Announcement and Call for Proposals for the Theme:Finance and Gender Budgets:Deadline has for submissions has been postponed to 15th of June, 2017.

ANNOUNCEMENT AND CALL FOR PROPOSALS FOR THE THEME:
FINANCE AND GENDER BUDGETS

Pursuant to the African Union Assembly Decision n°: Assembly/AU/Dec.277(XVI) and EX.CL/Dec.539(XVI) on the launching of African Women’s Decade (AWD) and the Fund for African Women, the AU is pleased to announce the call for the submission of project proposals under theme n°8 of the African Women Decade namely “Finance and Gender Budgets” which content is as follows: “Increased women access to financial resources from government budgets through gender budgeting, financial markets targeting economic stimulus packages and specialized funds from development partners to support women projects aimed at empowering women economically, and mobilize resources for the implementation of Decade activities in general and priority areas in particular to achieve Decade targets”. The implementation of the Decade themes is within the context of the integration of NEPAD into the African Union Structures and in line with Assembly Decision n° Assembly/AU/Dec.333 (XVI) to consolidate gains so far made and to achieve coherence. It also reaffirms African Women’s Decade to be the overall implementation framework for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) and the Fund for African Women’s Decade to be the vehicle for mobilizing resources in line with the Executive Council Decision EX.CL.Dec.539(XVI)(4) and calls for Development Partners support.

By this call, the Commission hereby invites members States and stakeholders to submit their project proposals on the Theme: “Finance and Gender Budgets” as endorsed by Ministers responsible for Gender and Women’s Affairs on 18th July 2016 in Kigali, Rwanda, in the margins of the 3th High Level Panel.
The Fund will benefit women, particularly youth and girls through grassroots initiatives, as follows:
a) African Union member States;
b) African Civil Society Organizations working on Finance and Gender Budgets.
Proposals will be funded for one year with a ceiling up to thirty thousand dollars ($30, 000).

1- Criteria for the selection of project under the Finance and Gender Budgets Theme:
Criteria for the selection of projects under the Finance and Gender Budgets theme are based on the global framework of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development, and on the Financing for gender equality and women’s empowerment in the Agenda 2063 for sustainable Development.
The project or programme should contribute to any of the following:
a) promote a Gender budgeting and financing, or gender-sensitive budgeting approach which aims at sustainable development;

b) demonstrate clearly it can advocate and influence for a prioritized and dedicated resource and funding allocation to gender equality and women’s empowerment activities;

c) Create a framework for a gender-responsive implementation of the Agenda 2063 through appropriate budgeting and financing from multiple and diverse sources;

d) Foster enabling environments for financing gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls;

e) Contribute to the adoption and strengthening of sound financing and budget policies and enforceable legislation and undertake transformative actions for the promotion of gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment at all levels;

f) Promote and support a gender-responsive approach to public financial management, including gender-responsive budgeting and tracking across all sectors of public expenditure, to address gaps in resourcing for gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.

2- In addition to the above criteria, the selected projects should:

a. Emphasize on financing and budgeting for gender equality and the empowerment of women through the commitments made in the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development;

b. Create an enabling gender-responsive financing and budgeting environment for sustainable development at all levels and by all actors and actively participate in the development of global partnership;

c. Ensure that all national and sectorial plans and policies for gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls are fully financed and adequately resourced to ensure their effective implementation;

d. Sensitize national and local authorities, and other existing institutions as well, to increase investment to close resource gaps, through the mobilization of financial resources from all sources, including public, private, domestic and international resource mobilization and allocation;

e. Enhance revenue administration through modernized and progressive tax systems, improved tax policy and more efficient tax collection; with a priority on gender equality and the empowerment of women in official development assistance;

f. Encourage and inform women at the institutional and national level to build on the progress achieved in financing and budgeting, in ensuring that official development assistance is used effectively to help meet the goals and targets of sustainable development to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of women;

g. Promote the involvement of all relevant stakeholders in government, civil society and the private sector in the gender-responsive budgeting for the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls;

h. Enhance economic efficiency and optimize the contribution of women to economic growth and poverty reduction, by creating awareness among decision-makers, the private sector and employers of the necessity of women’s economic empowerment and their important contribution through a better plan financing and budgeting;

i. Advocate for the need for gender mainstreaming, including targeted actions and investments in the formulation and implementation of all financial, economic, environmental and social policies.

j. Increase opportunities for the implementation of reforms in public financial management, strengthening the planning and budgeting systems;

k. Improve the living conditions of men and women and increase their longevity due to a better budget allocation;

Mode of application
1. Submission of a brief and schematic Concept Note in line with the application characteristics provided (attached). The Concept Note should be in summary form to facilitate technical evaluation and provisional approval or rejection by the Steering committee. It should not exceed one page;

2. Submission of a more detailed, well formulated project proposal, in accordance with the format provided (attached), which meets key operational, technical and procedural requirements required for the final evaluation of the proposal.

The application should include the following information:
1. A one page synthesis of the Concept Note (attached), as follows:
- Basic data (project name, management details, duration, geographical location, context and rationale of the project);

- Description of the project (purpose, goals and objectives, expected outcomes, activities, indicators, beneficiaries, entities and partners);

- A brief presentation of the implementing agency: 1) governance structures, financial management, monitoring and evaluation, and sustainability plans;

- Names and contact details (telephone numbers, email, etc) of signatories.

2. Detailed Project Proposal: Refer to attached outline

3. A page containing:
- The detailed budget in dollars (US$) and equipment (available and required). Distribution: 60% for equipment, and 40% for training and general expenses. The Fund for African Women does not cover salaries.
- Bank details of the organization;
All applications should include a letter of recommendation from national Coordination Committees or Ministries responsible for Gender and women’s Affairs. NGO’s and CSO’s, should provide a copy of the Letter of Information sent to your Ministry of women Affairs. All hard copies of applications should be sent through the respective Embassies of Member States in Ethiopia, with electronic copies submitted directly to the Commission, addressed to the Director- Women, Gender and Development Directorate, AU commission Fund for African Women, by April 15, 2017.
Kindly note that the commission will only accept proposals that adhere to the indicated theme.
This call for proposal will be posted on the AUC website http://www.au.int
The detailed format in which concept notes should be submitted is available on the website in English, French, Portuguese and Arabic.
Member States and grassroots organizations with the requisite capacity, experience in networking with women’s groups, community cooperatives, the informal sector, and addressing gender inequality are encouraged to apply.
For further information or clarifications, please contact WGDD@africa-union.org; Mr. Adoumtar Noubatour, Senior Programme Officer, Tel: +251 11 518 21 11- email: adoumtarn@africa-union.org ; Mrs Fiorella De Pede, email: FiorellaP@africa-union.org. Tel.: +251115182115.