Democracy Commission Small Grants Program

The Embassy of the United States of America in Kosovo is announcing the Spring 2013 round of the Democracy Commission Small Grants Program.  This program seeks to support the development of Kosovo’s democratic institutions and civil society by awarding small project grants to Kosovo non profit, non governmental organizations (NGOs) and independent local media organizations. The Democracy Commission grants are awarded on a competitive basis. Applications are now being accepted.

The closing date for applications for this round is May 15, 2013 at 17:00.  

This round of the Democracy Commission Small Grants Program will be dedicated to projects that target women and youth.

Women’s programs are activities designed to involve young girls and women with economic empowerment, education, violence against girls and women and women’s political participation.   

Youth programs are designed to involve individuals between ages 10 and 25 in activities oriented towards youth development, through leadership. Activities would include recreation, social life, education where participants might be involved in sports, community service, youth activism, youth service, outdoor education, and more.

The Democracy Commission does NOT fund the following:

• Fund-raising campaigns
• Humanitarian assistance projects
• Scientific research projects
• Projects with budgets that exceed $24,000 and take more than a year to implement
• Projects that duplicate existing projects already being implemented by an organization
• Projects submitted by for-profit, commercial organizations
• Projects that aim to support partisan political activity
• Conferences and individual trips abroad
• Trade activities
• U.S. organizations and individuals

Evaluation Process:

A review committee will be composed of representatives from different U.S. government agencies at the U.S. Embassy Pristina.  Applicants may be contacted with questions during this review process.

Evaluation Criteria:

The Democracy Commission will assess the following when evaluating grant proposals:

• The project proposal demonstrates that the organization has sufficient expertise, skills and human resources to implement the project.
• The organization demonstrates that it has a clear understanding of the underlying issue that the project is aiming to address and is able to articulate it accurately.
• The organization has consulted relevant experts’ resources, and potential partner organizations during the project’s design phase.
• The organization has identified appropriate beneficiaries or target groups in a way that maximizes project outcomes and the project has a clear focus and manageable scope.
• The project idea and approach is innovative, yet proposed activities are concrete, detailed and supported by a reasonable work plan.
• The project’s budget is well-organized, detailed and reasonable.  There are no budget lines labeled “miscellaneous expenses.”  Entertainment and alcoholic beverage expenses are not included in the budget.  The budget demonstrates that the organization has devoted time to plan for and assess actual expenses associated with the project instead of providing rough estimates.
• The organization has clearly articulated how it will assess and measure its own performance throughout the project implementation phase using concrete quantitative and qualitative assessment tools.
• The project proposal describes clearly the approach that will be used to ensure maximum sustainability of the project’s results after its completion.
• Past performance including U.S. government funded grants

Specific Guidelines:

• The maximum grant amount is USD 24,000.
• Grants are made on a one-time basis. A successful applicant may re-apply for a second grant, but the second proposal must be for a distinctly different project than the first project funded by the Democracy Commission.
• The application requires a detailed description of the activity for which grant funds are being requested and a budget proposal broken down by expenditure category, otherwise it will not be considered.

How to Apply?

Applicants must complete the standard application form in English. The forms are available for download on the website.

Applicants must submit the following items:

• Completed electronic version of the application using format provided on the website (mandatory)
•  NGO registration letter (for NGOs only)  or Licenses for media (for media only) – (mandatory)
• List of founders and board members (mandatory)
• CVs of the implementation team members, one page max. (mandatory)
• Detailed work-plan (mandatory)
• Letters of support (optional)

Electronic version of the application should be e-mailed to the following e-mail address:

To: PristinaGrants@state.gov

Subject: APPLICATION + NGO Name

Applications submitted over the deadline will be disqualified. Absolutely no exceptions will be made.