Deadline: March 2, 2018
The UNAOC Youth Solidarity Fund 2018 Call for Applications is now open. The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) is pleased to invite youth-led organizations to apply. The Youth Solidarity Fund (YSF), supports organizations that foster peaceful and inclusive societies by providing direct funding to outstanding projects promoting intercultural and interfaith dialogue.
Established in 2008, the Fund responded to calls for action made by youth-led organizations around the world on the importance of establishing funding mechanisms for youth. Today, the Fund is more relevant than ever: As the global agenda increasingly speaks of youth’s participation and contribution to peace, development and security, it is critical to support this participation and contribution through funding and partnership opportunities.
The funded projects are youth-led and youth-focused (18-35 years) but have an impact on entire communities, often involving religious or political leaders, policy-makers, educational institutions and media organizations. The Fund also links small scale and local work to larger movements for social and global change, for a broader and deeper impact.
UNAOC offers technical support and capacity building to the organizations during and/or after the implementation of funded projects in the areas of gender mainstreaming, media relations, advocacy, financial management, networking, sustainability, monitoring and evaluation. The call is open to organizations from select countries whose work seeks to foster peaceful and inclusive societies through improved understanding and collaboration across cultures, faiths and beliefs.
Eligibility
Youth organizations are subject to the same criteria as other partners of the United Nations System in that they must be accountable, transparent and refrain from all discriminatory practices.
To be eligible, applying youth organizations need to fulfill each and every one of the following criteria:
- Be youth-led: a majority of the positions and decision-making roles within the organization are held by women and men between the ages of 18 and 35;
- Be a non-profit, non-governmental organization (with the exception of national youth councils) registered in the country of operation as a charity, trust, foundation or association;
- Be officially registered and operational for a minimum of 2 years at the time of the application with funding base and project implementation (e.g. registered in January 2016 or earlier);
- Be registered and operate in one of the countries below;
- Have a democratic governance structure and decision making mechanism, including consultative processes in formulating priorities and policies;
- Have an ability to demonstrate proper and consistent monitoring, evaluation and record-keeping of their activities, including project evaluation reports and financial accounts;
- Have a gender perspective/balance reflected in their staff, beneficiaries and activities;
- Have no adherence to or affiliations with violent ideologies or antagonism against any particular country, culture, religion or belief system, ethnic group, gender, etc.; and
- Did not receive funding under past editions of YSF or did not receive the Intercultural Innovation Award.
Note: If you applied to YSF in the past, but were not selected, you can apply to YSF again.
Upon request, organizations will need to provide documented evidence of how they fulfill all of these criteria.
Please note that project proposals will not be considered eligible for funding if they are submitted by: governments, international governmental organizations, non-youth led organizations, unregistered groups of youth, business entities, as well as individuals.
Eligible Countries
The current YSF Call for Applications will welcome proposals from youth-led organizations officially registered and operating in the following countries.
Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, China, People’s Republic, Comoros, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, India, Indonesia, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Israel, Jordan Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Rwanda, Saint Helena Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, State of Palestine, Sudan, Swaziland, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe,
Criteria for Projects
All submitted projects must fulfill each and every one of the following criteria to be deemed eligible and be reviewed by the Selection Committee:
- Origin: The project was developed and written by youth;
- Target Audience: The project targets primarily youth. Gender balance among project participants is ensured;
- Objective: The project contributes to advancing the UNAOC mandate of promoting a more socially inclusive world, by building mutual respect among peoples of different cultural and religious identities;
- Management: The project is managed by a youth-led organization, responding to all eligibility criteria mentioned above;
- Project Coordinator: The Project Coordinator is an employee of the applying organization and is between the ages of 18 and 35 at the moment of the application;
- Duration and Timing: The project must be implemented during May-November 2018 period, while final reports will need to be submitted by 15 November 2018 at the very latest;
- Location: Project activities are implemented in the country (ies) mentioned in the above list (see geographical coverage section;
- Budget: The organization needs to guarantee its capacity to implement all elements of the proposed project with the funds requested. Grants provided by UNAOC will not exceed USD 25,000. The proposed budget will have 90% of costs associated with direct project activities and only up to 10% of it will cover Project Coordinator’s salary/fees. Office rent cost, utilities and purchase of technical equipment (e.g. computers, copiers, printers, cameras, telephones, etc.) cannot be part of the budget;
- English: Application and CV/resume of the Project Coordinator must be in English only;
- Registration certificate and statute: A copy of a registration certificate and a statute need to be attached to the application form. They can be submitted in original language of the country where the organization is registered. Translations may be requested during later stages of the selection process.
Application
In order to be considered complete and valid, the application package must include the following and be submitted through the online application system.
- The application form, completed and certified by the applicant organization;
- A copy of the registration certificate of the applicant organization;
- A copy of the statutes/by-laws of the applicant organization;
- An organizational chart, depicting the ages of key decision makers within the organization;
- A biography of the current Executive/Managing Director, showing date of birth (1 page maximum);
- The resume/CV of the project coordinator (2 pages maximum);
- A picture or scan of the project coordinator’s passport identification page. If the project coordinator does not have an international passport, upload his or her national identification card.
Word/character limit for each question in the application form needs to be respected. The application system automatically counts words and characters.
Interested organizations can apply here.
For more information, visit UNAOC Youth Solidarity Fund.
