Call for Small Grants - Enhancing Public Accountability and Trust In Lebanon

The Enhancing Public Accountability and Trust in Lebanon (EPATL) small grants program is an initiative managed by ARK with support from the United States Embassy in Lebanon through the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) that promotes social accountability. In the early stages, social accountability works through engaging citizens and civil society in providing transparent information about and building the capacity for citizen oversight.. This can include, for example, focus areas ranging participatory governance, inclusive economic growth, to rights-based issues (such as freedom of expression and gender equality). Civil society-led knowledge production and advocacy focusing on these issues aims to create an environment in which citizens have access to transparent information to effectively advocate for change.

In support of promoting improved social accountability in Lebanon, the EPATL grants program will provide capacity building and grants for CSOs and NGOs in Lebanon to implement research and advocacy projects. A total of $200,000 is allocated for distribution among grantees. Approximately 4-5 CSOs will be selected with an award ceiling of $50,000.

To be eligible for funding, proposed projects must demonstrate a focus on topics relevant to broad segments of the Lebanese public. Proposals on topics including the following will be welcomed:

• Civic engagement and participatory governance
• Inclusive economic growth
• Freedom of expression
• Youth Leadership Development
• Women’s rights and women’s economic empowerment

The above list is not exhaustive and proposals focused on other topics are welcome provided that they focus on issues relevant to the rights of Lebanese citizens.

All projects must include two phases: 

1. A research phase focusing on a key issue of relevance to Lebanese citizens or populations residing in Lebanon (2 to 3 months); and
2. An advocacy phase focused on using the results of the research phase to inform advocacy actions targeting key audiences, including: 
   • At least one citizen engagement event
   • At least one event engaging other non-governmental stakeholders (e.g. embassies, INGOs) 
   • At least one online advocacy campaign  

Your proposal should reflect your organization’s prior work in the areas of advocacy, transparency and accountability, the organization’s mission and the change you would like to affect through your grant.  Extensive research/advocacy experience is not required to apply. All projects will be co-designed with ARK and extensive, tailored capacity building will be provided to grantees in communications, research, advocacy, compliance, and DMEL. Projects will begin approximately September 16^th and complete May 16^th, 2022.

Proposals including direct service provision to beneficiaries (e.g. aid distribution) will not be considered.

The below form will guide you in the development of your proposal. Your detailed application is not limited in length and the number of pages for your response is purely indicative. However, it is important that you avoid repetition and that you respond clearly. Proposals accepted for grants will demonstrate a strong understanding of issues of social accountability and creative approaches to its promotion.

Q&A Session: A Q&A will be held on August 5^th at 2:00 PM Beirut time. All questions and RSVPs must be submitted to the email address below by July 28^th at 5:00 PM in order to be included in the Q&A.

Submission Deadline: 10 August 2020

Submit to:  [email protected]

Documents:   Proposal Submission Form (MS Word)

                        Annex 1 – Detailed Budget (MS Word))

                        Annex 2 – Past Performance (MS Word)