The Small Grants Program

We regret to inform you that in 2004 the Warsaw Office has not been allocated funds under the Small Grants Program (SmGP). We have therefore been unable to disburse grants under the program in 2004. To enquire whether the Poland country office of the World Bank will have a SmGP in 2005, please contact our office early next year for information.

Program information for previous years is below. In the meantime, if you need more information on the SmGP, please contact:

Jacek Wojciechowicz, jwojciechowicz@worldbank.org or
Malgorzata Dworzynska, mdworzynska@worldbank.org.

Small Grants Program 2003 

As a result of an agreement between the Poland Country Office of the World Bank and the Swiss Embassy in Poland, projects competing under the Small Grants Program in 2003 may be financed from the grant facility of the Swiss government, administered by the Embassy. There is no need to submit separate applications. Those programs which will not receive funding under the Small Grants Program of the World Bank, will automatically be screened from the point of view of possible funding from the facility of the Swiss government.

While this year's World Bank priority will be given to organizations which will seek financing for model projects aimed at solving problems of those disabled, in cooperation and with co-financing from local governments, the Swiss Embassy will have a preference for local initiatives originated from marginalized rural areas (as for example, but not limited to, Lubelskie, Podlasie or Podkarpacie regions).

The Small Grants Program provides grants to civil society organizations through participating World Bank Country Offices. This applies also to the World Bank Office in Poland. To reinforce the empowerment dimension of poverty reduction, the Small Grants Program focuses on civic engagement for the empowerment of marginalized and vulnerable groups. The purpose of the Small Grants program is to support the empowerment of citizens to have greater ownership of development processes, thereby making these processes more inclusive and equitable. This year preference will be given to organizations which will seek financing for model projects aimed at solving problems of those disabled in cooperation and with co-financing from local governments.

Crucial ingredients for empowerment of vulnerable groups include: access to information, access to organizational links outside the local domain, capacity to influence the public arena and to negotiate with local and national authorities, the existence of trustful national and local institutions, and the presence of enabling policy and legal frameworks for civic engagement. Civil society organizations perform a valuable role in engaging their fellow citizens in the fight against poverty and exclusion. Thus, the intended beneficiaries of the Small Grants Program are civil society organizations engaged in initiatives aiming at empowering groups and individuals that have been marginalized and excluded from the public realm.

· Promote public consensus and local ownership for reforms and for national poverty reduction and development strategies by creating knowledge-sharing networks, building common ground for understanding, encouraging public-private cooperation, and sometimes even diffusing tensions;
· Give voice to the concerns of primary and secondary stakeholders, particularly poor and marginalized populations, and help ensure that their views are factored into policy and program decisions;
· Strengthen and leverage impact of development programs by providing local knowledge, identifying potential risks, targeting assistance, and expanding reach, particularly at the community level;
· Bring innovative ideas and solutions to development challenges at both the local and global levels;
· Provide professional expertise and increase capacity for effective service delivery, especially in environments with weak public sector capacity or in post-conflict situations; and
· Improve public transparency and accountability of development activities, contributing to the enabling environment for good governance.

The World Bank Small Grants Program is able to fund only a very small percentage of the requests it receives. Many requests are declined, not because they lack merit, but because they do not match either the current objectives, or the criteria of the Small Grants Program. Your activity may fall within the objectives and criteria, but the demand far surpasses the availability of funds. Before applying, take time to read the Guidelines to determine if there is a match.

· Civil society organizations based in Poland and working on issues of development can apply for a grant.
· Civil society organizations must be in good standing and have a record of achievement in the community and record of financial probity;
· Priority will be given to organizations not supported by the Program in previous years (organizations are not eligible for more than three grants from the Small Grants Program within a five-year period).

The Small Grants Program supports activities related to civic engagement for the empowerment of marginalized and vulnerable groups. Civic Engagement is the process through which civil society organizations actively engage in relationships and actions with the state and other development actors to address issues of public concern.
Activities should:
· Promote dialogue and dissemination of information; and
· Enhance partnerships with key players in support of the development process. Key players could include government agencies, civil society organizations, multilateral and bilateral agencies, foundation, and private sector.
Activities may include, but are not limited to, workshops and seminars, costs for publications or audio-visual materials, or other innovative networking efforts that small organizations generally find difficult to fund through their regular program budgets. The activity should be completed within one year of the date the grant is awarded.

Small Grants can not fund: Research programs, formal academic training programs, operational projects, ongoing institutional core support (such as equipment), scholarships, fellowships, study programs, individuals applying on their own behalf, or nonlegal entities. Proposed activities should not compete with or substitute for regular World Bank instruments; the activity should be clearly distinguishable from the Bank's regular programs.

Most grants are in the range of $3,000 to $7,000 with a maximum of $15,000. The Small Grants Program rarely funds more than half of the proposed budget for an activity, and therefore prefers that its grants help leverage additional contributions from other sources. Applicant organizations are asked to describe how a grant from the World Bank might help them to raise matching funds from other donors.

Guidelines and application forms are available from the World Bank Office in Warsaw. Applicants are advised to read the criteria and the application form carefully before submitting an application.

Grants are awarded by a Small Grants Advisory Committee, convened in the World Bank Office in Poland. Applications are screened and reviewed to ensure that the criteria is met. The Small Grants Program gives prompt consideration to all proposals. The review may take up to five weeks to complete. Given the very large number of requests, personal visits and phone calls to the World Bank Office by the grantees are not encouraged.

Applications should be mailed, send by fax or electronic mail to:

Jacek Wojciechowicz
External Affairs Officer
World Bank Office in Poland
Warsaw Financial Center, 9th floor
Emilii Plater 53 Str. Ph: (22) 520 8000
00-113 Warsaw Fax: (22) 520 8001
Email: jwojciechowicz@worldbank.org
Or
Ma³gorzata Chaciñska
External Affairs Assistant
World Bank Office in Poland
Warsaw Financial Center, 9th floor
Emilii Plater 53 Str. Ph: (22) 520 8000
00-113 Warsaw fax.: (22) 520 80 01
Email: mchacinska@worldbank.org



Additional resources for CSOs are available from the World Bank website, www.worldbank.org.

Application Number: _________
Date Received:_______________

Executive Summary(Please type using no more than one page)

1. Date:

2. Name of organization:

3. Contact person and title:

4. Address:

5. City, Country, Postal Code:

6. Telephone: Fax:
Email: Website (if available):

7. Mission statement of the applicant organization:

8. Purpose of funding request and how this activity relates to civic engagement:

9. Target population and number benefiting from the proposed activity:

10. Period this funding request will cover:

11. Amount of request (Details under Activity Income):

12. If your organization has received previous support from the World Bank, please list the year, amount, and describe for what purpose:

13. Authorizing signature of the project coordinator and director, board chair or treasurer:
Signature:
Name (print): Title:



Signature:
Name (print): Title:


Purpose of the Grant
14. Describe briefly the need or issue you will address. Include a description of the constituency served (including number participating) and how they will participate/benefit?
15. How will the proposed activity promote civic engagement for empowerment? How will the activity enable marginalized citizens to have greater control over local and community level development activities?
16. List the activity goal(s) and measurable objective(s).
17. Is the activity new or ongoing on the part of the applicant organization? If the activity is ongoing, how will your organization support this activity in the future?
18. Provide a brief timetable for implementation of activity.
19. What other organizations, if any, will be participating in the activity? Describe their roles.
20. List the names and qualifications of key staff/volunteers responsible for activity implementation.

Evaluation
21. Please list the specific outcomes of your activity. What assessment methods/strategies will you use to track and measure outcomes? (e.g. interviews, surveys, focus groups, community feedback, etc.)
22. Describe briefly what will be different at the end of the grant period.
23. How will the activity's results be used and/or disseminated?

Activity Income
24. Total applicant contribution.
a. In kind (describe): US$___________
b. Cash: US$___________
Total:US$___________
please explain how you will measure your contribution
25. Funding leveraged by applicant from other donors:
(List all sources and give estimated amounts)
Source Amount
a. US$___________
b. US$___________
Total: US$___________
26. Total requested from the World Bank: US$___________
27. Total activity income from all sources: US$___________


Budget for the Proposed Activity

Please (1) provide the necessary information for each budget item, and (2) indicate the funding source(s) that will cover the expense. Use as much space as necessary. All items must be related to the activity.


Attachments

Please attach the following documents to your proposal, if available:

ü Complete list of the applicant organization's senior staff and board of directors;
ü Most recent annual financial statement listing income sources (audited if available);
ü Organization's projected income and expense budget for current fiscal year, listing income sources;
ü Copy of the applicant organization's registration status;
ü Latest annual report (it is also possible to provide the web page address only).formation Needed to Complete a Small Grants Program Application