Small Grants Program

OCIAL DEVELOPMENTT H E W O R L D B A N K

About the Program

The Program provides grants to civil society organiza-tions through participating World Bank Country Officesand is guided by the Small Grants Program Secretariatand Steering Committee in Washington, D.C.

The Small Grants Program focuses on civic engagementfor the empowerment of marginalized and vulnerablegroups. The purpose of the Small Grants program is tosupport the empowerment of citizens to have greaterownership of development processes, thereby makingthese processes more inclusive, equitable andcontributing to broad country ownership ofdevelopment policies as envisioned in theComprehensive Development Framework principles.

Crucial ingredients for empowerment of vulnerablegroups include: access to information, access to organi-zational links outside the local domain, capacity toinfluence the public arena and to negotiate with localand national authorities, the existence of trustfulnational and local institutions, and the presence ofenabling policy and legal frameworks for civicengagement. Civil society organizations perform avaluable role in engaging their fellow citizens in thefight against poverty and exclusion. Thus, the intendedbeneficiaries of the Small Grants Program are civilsociety organizations engaged in initiatives aiming atempowering groups and individuals that have beenmarginalized and excluded from the public realm.

To Apply for FundingContact the World BankCountry Offices where your activitiesare located. For contactinformation seewww.worldbank.org/smallgrantsprogram

AlbaniaAngolaArgentinaArmeniaAzerbaijanBangladeshBelarusBosniaBrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoBurundiCambodiaChadChileChinaColombiaCongoCroatiaDominican

RepublicEcuadorEthiopiaGeorgiaGhanaGuinea-BissauHungaryIndiaIndonesiaKazakhstanKenyaKyrgyzstanLaosLatviaLebanonLithuania

MacedoniaMadagascarMauritaniaMexicoMoldovaMongoliaMoroccoMozambiqueNigerNigeriaParaguayPeruPhilippinesPolandRomaniaRussian

FederationRwandaSenegalSlovak RepublicTajikistanThailandTogoTurkeyTurkmenistanUkraineUruguayUzbekistanVenezuelaViet NamWest Bank GazaYemenYugoslaviaZambiaZimbabwe

Civic Engagement Can…

» Promote public consensus and local ownership forreforms and for national poverty reduction anddevelopment strategies by creating knowledge-sharing networks, building common ground forunderstanding, encouraging public-privatecooperation, and sometimes even diffusing tensions;

» Give voice to the concerns of primary andsecondary stakeholders, particularly poor andmarginalized populations, and help ensure that theirviews are factored into policy and programdecisions;

» Strengthen and leverage impact of developmentprograms by providing local knowledge, identifyingpotential risks, targeting assistance, and expandingreach, particularly at the community level;

» Bring innovative ideas and solutions todevelopment challenges at both the local and globallevels;

» Provide professional expertise and enhance capacityfor effective service delivery, especially in environ-ments with weakpublic sectorcapacity or in post-conflict situations;and

» Improve publictransparency andaccountability ofdevelopmentactivities,contributing to theenablingenvironment forgood governance.

How to Apply for a Grant?The Small Grants Program is admin-istered by participating World BankCountry Offices. Not all CountryOffices participate in the SmallGrants Program. Country Officesmay have specific focus tailored tothe country context ofcivic engagement. Guidelines andapplication forms are available from

participating World Bank Country Offices each January of eachyear. The Small Grants Program makes decisions only once ayear, usually by May of the same year. Applicant organizationsshould apply at least four to six months in advance of the datethat the grant activitystarts. Applicants areadvised to read thecriteria and theapplication form carefullybefore submitting anapplication. Requestsand proposals should notbe sent to World Bankheadquarters inWashington, D.C.

Who Can Apply?Civil society organizations based in a developing country andworking on development issues can apply.

Civil society organizations must be in good standing and havea record of achievement in the community and record offinancial probity.

Priority will be given to organizations not supported by theSmall Grants Program in previous years (organizations are noteligible for more than three grants from the Small GrantsProgram within a five-year period).

The World Bank Small Grants Program is able to fund only avery small percentage of the requests it receives. The demandfor grants greatly exceeds the availability of funds.

What Kind of Activities are Supported?

The Small Grants Program supports activities related to civicengagement for the empowerment of marginalized andvulnerable groups. Civic Engagement is the process throughwhich civil society organizations actively engage in relation-ships and actions with the state and other development actorsto address issues of public concern.

Activities should promote dialogue and dissemination ofinformation and enhance partnerships with key players insupport of the development process. Key players could includegovernment agencies, civil society organizations, multilateraland bilateral agencies, foundations, and private sectorcompanies or organizations.

Activities may include, but are not limited to, workshops andseminars, costs for publications or audio-visual materials, orother innovative networking efforts that small organizationsgenerally find difficult to fund through their regular programbudgets. The activity should be completed within one year ofthe date the grant is awarded.

Small Grants cannot fund: Research programs, formalacademic training programs, operational projects, ongoinginstitutional core support (such as equipment), scholarships,fellowships, study programs, individuals applying on theirown behalf, or nonlegal entities. Proposed activities should notcompete with or substitute for regular World Bank instruments;the activity should be consistent withthe Bank’s Country Assistance Strategyin any given country.

What Size of Grants are Awarded?Most grants are in the range of $3,000 to$7,000 with a maximum of $15,000. The Small Grants Programrarely funds more than half of the proposed budget for anactivity, and therefore prefers that its grants help leverageadditional contributions from other sources. Applicant organi-zations are asked to describe how a grant from the World Bankmight help them to raise matching funds from other donors.

Examples of Activities Dialogue for Development. The Small GrantsProgram grantees have promoted dialogues betweenlocal authorities and citizens, specifically targetingthose who are marginalized, such as refugees,displace persons, and returnees. The grants haveenabled cooperation between NGOs and politicalparties for a greater involvement of civil societyorganizations in creating policies for thedevelopment of local and regional communities.The dialogue among the sectors (government,private sector, and independent sector) is expected tobecome an important driving force for overalldemocratization and an open discussion on keyeconomic and social policy issues. It also contributesto promoting a culture of tolerance and nonviolentcommunications, particularly in poor communities.

Several Small Grants Program grantees’ activitieshave focused on marginalized groups of people.NGOs have organized workshops to educate othercivil society groups and produced accessiblematerials that have facilitated constructive dialoguesamong multi-stakeholder groups. In some cases,activities have built on an understanding of genderissues in the context of poverty reduction and haveled to the participation of women in nationaldecision making processes related to povertyreduction strategy processes. Activities help tobridge gaps between rural and urban interests; menand women; and young and elderly to shareinformation and experiences about developmentprocesses.

The World BankSocial Development Department

1818 H Street, NWWashington, D.C. 20433

www.worldbank.org/smallgrantsprogramwww.worldbank.org/participation

pce@worldbank.org