[see also General guidelines]

OSISA will endeavour to support initiatives that –

• Use methods and processes that are empowering and participatory

• Promote the active involvement of women, young people, people with disabilities and people living with HIV AND AIDS, as well as other vulnerable groups

• Are innovative and catalytic in nature

• Support and promote the ideals of an Open Society, especially the use of the media as a tool for monitoring, advocacy and awareness raising

• Promote the role and capacity of states to manage the HIV and AIDS response in a responsible and transparent manner, particularly education, health and institutions responsible for social security

• Promote greater transparency and accountability in HIV and AIDS funding and the administration of programmes

• Promote partnerships and coordination amongst CSOs and government

• Promote a mainstreaming approach.

As an overarching principle, OSISA will support programmes that have an emphasis on structural, institutional and social change.

In addition, OSISA will support programmes that satisfy the following criteria: -

• (Except in very exceptional circumstances), that the initiative is not limited to a small group of individuals, or an individual, but mobilises a significant cross section of actors through:

  • direct wider ownership and stakeholdership, (that is, the project is actually owned by a wide membership-based organisation, and the members have control over its direction)

  • closely planned participation by different organisations or actors, reinforcing one another to achieve a common goal,

  • initiatives where a project that OSISA is already supporting is complemented or extended.

  • active networking, and other linkages.

• That the project incorporates effective participation of women in the entire project cycle, including that the baseline studies contain, as much as possible, disaggregated information on women and men; that the project design addresses gender related challenges emerging in the baseline; project activities seek to empower women and/or men to transform gender relations, monitoring and evaluation indicators are as far as possible disaggregated.

• That, in addition to the above, the project strives to include young people and adults in effective participation and decision making, including through the involvement of young people who are part of progressive youth movements.

• That the implementing organization proposed in the project –

  • is a credible, and committed actor in the area of work in question, as could be suggested from peer reports, donor reviews, previous experience and reputation. Where the organisation is new, OSISA will in place of the above consider the organisation’s leadership, clarity of vision, contribution of own time, and mobilization of own resources.

  • is demonstrably committed to implementing within its own structures and work patterns, the ideals of open society, including gender equitable staff development and other human resource processes, free exercise by staff of labour rights, etc.

  • has strong accounting mechanisms to its board, wider stakeholders, and public. This could be demonstrated by the publication of annual reports and plans, the keeping of proper and accessible records of financial accounting and inventories, and platforms for stakeholders and related publics to influence strategic direction and priorities.

• That the project reaches rural and other communities that would not have traditionally been included in similar or related projects.

• That the project is innovative in its methodologies, and seeks to maximize impact through creative multiplier effects, rather than one-off events.

• That it articulates or develops ideas on sustainability beyond OSISA support.

AREAS OF SUPPORT

The main content areas of possible OSISA support will include:-

• Projects that promote public participation in policy and the law. OSISA will support organisations that seek to expand the role of civil society in decision-making processes related to HIV and AIDS at national and local levels, as well as at a SADC or regional level.

• Projects that hold states and institutions accountable for the use of funds and resources earmarked for HIV and AIDS. The establishment of the GFATM, and the introduction of PEPFAR and MAP monies have ostensibly boosted the capacity of state and non-state actors to scale up prevention, care and support and treatment programmes. In addition, a number of states across the region have increased their domestic commitments to HIV and AIDS expenditure. Despite this, monitoring the movement and disbursal of these funds has proven to be difficult. OSISA will support organisations seeking to track resources from international and domestic sources, particularly where this monitoring demonstrates macro challenges faced by states and/or civil society organisations wishing to access such funding.

• Interlocution projects. OSISA will support organisations that develop practical mechanisms for CSOs to access funds, particularly where these funds are difficult to access due to bureaucratic processes.

• Projects that monitor service delivery. OSISA’s HIV and AIDS programme will support projects monitor the delivery of HIV and AIDS and health services, particularly in rural areas. In particular, organisations working on treatment literacy, community preparedness and equitable access to anti-retrovirals and treatments for opportunistic infections, including for children, will be a core focus of this dimension of the programme.

• Projects that protect and promote the rights of vulnerable and marginalised groups of people. Each programme within OSISA is underpinned by the principle of protecting and promoting human rights. However, the stigma linked to HIV and AIDS underscores the need to vigorously to uphold this principle. Organisations working with or comprising marginalised, vulnerable or structurally disempowered groups such as people living with HIV and AIDS, women, young people, commercial sex workers, ethnic minorities, men who have sex with men, people with disabilities, and others will be supported in their efforts to mobilise around HIV and AIDS.

• Initiatives that support organisational development efforts within institutions. AIDS Service Organisations have emerged as a response to HIV and AIDS by providing prevention, care and support or advocacy support. Yet many of these groups have not internalised the types of institutional changes that are required to move beyond workplace policies. Workplace policies on AIDS are an important but relatively small component of the changes that are required to create environments that are able to meet the challenges posed by HIV and AIDS. OSISA will support organisational transformation efforts that are aimed at addressing the challenge of AIDS internally as well as externally.

WHAT OSISA WILL NOT FUND

OSISA believes that each of the following areas of intervention are valuable and necessary, and is in no way opposed to such work in an ideological sense. However, given the resources of the organisation, and its traditional mandate, OSISA is regretfully unable to fund the following:

• The welfare needs of communities; e.g. feeding schemes, community-gardening, micro-credit and other small-scale income generation projects that are not linked to wider advocacy strategies;

• Orphanages and other forms of long-term institutionalised care for children;

• The purchase of commodities that should be made available by the state, e.g. condoms, contraceptives, home-based care kits;

• HIV and AIDS awareness-raising workshops (especially those that seek exclusively to inform people about HIV and AIDS and are not linked to broader policy, advocacy or curriculum-based initiatives);

• Academic or research projects that have no clear linkages with practice;

• Regional initiatives that are not connected to national organisations, national experiences or national efforts.

METHOD OF APPLYING FOR SUPPORT FROM OSISA

• An organization or individual interested in seeking possible support from OSISA will send a preliminary letter of inquiry of no more than two pages, outlining the proposer of the project, the scope and purpose of the project, the activities and methodology of the project, linkages with other initiatives, specific expected outputs of the project, as well as a summary of resources being applied for from OSISA.

• If, after reviewing the letter of inquiry, OSISA is of the view that the project has the potential for support from OSISA, OSISA will seek to engage with the proposer of the project on a partnership basis, and this may include mutual discussions to explore what could be the most effective interventions to address the problem and need identified.

• The proposer will then submit a fuller proposal, which will contain the following:

  • Executive Summary, which should be no longer than five sentences summarising the main content of the proposal.

  • Aims and objectives of the project/programme or initiative that is proposed

  • Problem statement which explains that challenge that the proposal responds to or hopes to address. This should include some description of the external environment in which the project will be implemented.

  • Activities of the project. This will include details on how the programme will be implemented, timeframes and the geographic locations in which activities will be carried out.

  • Partnerships and stakeholders. This explain the project’s relationship to stakeholders, government, and/or other funders and implementers.

  • Project costs and financing sources. This will include information about other sources of funding that are being sought, other funds that have been secured, as well as the contribution that is being made by the organisation seeking the funding. All components of all budgets must be submitted in US dollars. Budgets in any other currency will be rejected.

  • Risk assessment. This examines the possible factors that could affect the success of the project, and how these factors will be addressed should they arise during the course of implementation.

  • Capacity-building. This section provides an indication of the capacity within the organization to implement the project, and identifies external human capacity needs where appropriate.

Accompanying information to the proposal

The following format should be followed: –

• A copy verifying the organisation’s legal status as a non-profit institution

• A copy of the organisation’s constitution and other governing instruments.

• A description of the organization’s goals and objectives.

• A list of the organisation’s board members, management, and essential programme staff and membership profile.

• Most recent annual activity and audited financial report.

• A detailed explanation of how the organization is addressing sustainability issues, as well as a list of current sources of funding.

• Other donors who have been approached to fund the project submitted to OSISA, including the name of the relevant individual at the donor agency, and their contact information.

Guidelines for proposal writing are available on request.

Application documents should be sent to OSISA’s office in Johannesburg. Applications are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Although preliminary assessment and interaction regarding a proposal is the responsibility of the Programme Officer, the overall decision lies with the OSISA Board.

For further information contact:

The HIV and AIDS Programme Officer

Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa

P O Box 678, Wits 2050

Johannesburg, South Africa.

Telephone: + 27 (11) 403 3414/5/6

Fax: +27 (11) 403 2708

Email: hiv.aids@osisa.org