Women, Peace and Security Call for proposals for projects implemented 2022-2025: Organisational Assessment of Applicants
Norad’s Section for Gender Equality received 6 grant proposals by 20 April 2022. The purpose of this review was to carry out organisational assessments of the selected organisations in accordance with RAM standards 1 and 2; to assess the applicants and their documentation in accordance with RAM standards 1 and 2, and to form an opinion regarding RAM standards 1 and 2. These assessments were further used to form a basis for Norad case officers’ further assessments on each of the two standards, as well as the applications and the applicants.
The assessments were based on the following questions from the ToR:
RAM 1: The applicant:
A: Extended partners assessments
1. Has the applicant included any extended partner assessments?
2. Are there any documentation from the assessment(s) that shows that the applicant is not compliant with Norad’s requirements?
3. If applicable, has the applicant followed up on previous feedback?
B: Internal control routines and systems
The review will assess whether the applicant has:
4. procurement procedures and anti-corruption policy, including whistleblower channel;
5. financial manual or similar procedures for financial management, including routines for internal control, internal audit and financial audit of projects and programmes;
6. sufficient capital to cover its debts and repay any claims, and whether it has stable and reliable sources of funding,
7. experience in handling grants of the size applied for.
Furthermore, the review will cover the following issues:
8. What is the size of the applied amount for the first year of the project, compared to the latest annual financial report (in percentage)?
9. Does the organization have the relevant and necessary staff to execute the project?
10. Is the applicant’s procurements procedures and anti-corruption policy in line with the minimum requirements of MFA/Norad?
11. Does the applicants financial audit and management letter show any weaknesses in the internal control in the recent years?
12. Are roles and responsibilities clearly defined within the organisation? Is there a clear separation of duties between a board/similar body and the rest of the organisation?
13. Are the applicant's ethical guidelines in line with the requirements of the grant scheme rules?
In projects where the applicant is to provide support to partners/suppliers/sub-grantees etc., the following will also be considered:
14. Does the applicant have a system for selecting and follow-up of partners?
15. Does the applicant conduct partner assessments/due diligence of sub-grantees?
16. Does the applicant enter into written agreements with the sub-grantee? Are the agreements in line with agreements are in line with MFA/Norad's agreement requirements?
RAM 2: Results:
C: Assessment of achieved results.
17. Has the organization been able to report on results in a credible way previously?
18. Is there a plausible link between the organization's ability and actual achieved results?
19. Do the previous results appear to have been achieved cost-efficiently?
20. Are results achieved relevant for the grant scheme? Can the applicant realistically achieve the anticipated results in the project it is applying for?