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Deadline 9th August 2024

This Terms of Reference covers 1) background info on CIVICUS and DDI, 2) Scope of work and expectations for this grant, 3) minimum eligibility requirements and application process.

TERMS OF REFERENCE

The Digital Democracy Initiative (DDI) team at CIVICUS is looking for regional partners to lead on the implementation of the DDI support mechanism prototypes in the Middle East & North Africa Region.

This is a grant opportunity. If you are interested in submitting a proposal, we strongly recommend reading all sections of these terms of reference carefully before starting your application.

ABOUT CIVICUS

CIVICUS is a global alliance of civil society organisations and activists established in 1993 and dedicated to strengthening citizen action and civil society globally. We have been proudly headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, since 2002, with additional hubs across the globe. The alliance currently comprises over 15,000 members in more than 189 countries. Our membership is diverse, spanning a wide range of issues, sizes and organisation types, and our staff is based across the globe in over 20 countries. This diversity is one of our most significant strengths, and we are continually searching for practical ways to implement diverse and inclusive principles within civil society. Our definition of civil society is broad and covers non-governmental organisations, activists, civil society coalitions and networks, protest and social movements, voluntary bodies, campaigning organisations, charities, faith-based groups, trade unions and philanthropic foundations.

BACKGROUND

The Digital Democracy Initiative (DDI), Enable and Amplify Project, led by CIVICUS in partnership with Global Focus, aims to help expand and protect inclusive democracy and civic space through the improved use of digital technology for civic engagement. The project focuses on supporting local civil society actors operating in restrictive contexts in global south countries. You can learn more on the DDI website. 

The inception phase of the project consisted of regional explorations of the landscape, support infrastructure, challenges, and opportunities for pro-democracy civil society across seven global majority regions (Sub-Saharan Africa, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, the Pacific, South Asia, and East Asia). It also included the co-design of new potential financial and non-financial support mechanisms that could help sustain, strengthen, and expand the work of local civil society actors promoting inclusive democracy and protecting civic space in the digital age. 

In the upcoming phase of the project, these context-specific, inclusive, and needs-based financial and non-financial support mechanisms co-designed by local civil society will be tested and implemented at the regional level. In every region, the mechanisms will provide a range of support instruments, including sub-grants, learning resources and opportunities, and technical accompaniment to build core organisational capacities and digital skills related to action on civic space and advancing inclusive democratic spaces offline and online.

These terms of reference serve as an open call for one regional host partner (or a consortium of organisations coming together to pull expertise together) in the Middle East & North Africa region that will lead the regional launch and implementation of the prototyped mechanisms with a wide and diverse range of local civil society actors. 

A further summary description of the financial and non-financial support mechanism prototypes for the Middle East & North Africa Region can be found here.

OBJECTIVES OF THE REGIONAL SUPPORT MECHANISMS   

General: To enable local civil society in the Global South to utilise digital technology to amplify efforts to promote inclusive democracy by providing holistic financial and non-financial support to local civil society actors that: 1) enables them to experiment, learn and take action; and 2) strengthens collaboration and local support ecosystems for civil society work on civic space and inclusive democracy.       

Objective 1: Adapt, develop, launch, and implement one financial and one non-financial support mechanism prototype for strengthening civil society working on promoting inclusive democracy in the digital age in the Middle East and North Africa Region. These mechanisms have been co-designed by relevant local civil society organisations and groups in the region. 

Objective 2: To actively engage local civil society actors’ leadership and agendas in the delivery of these interventions and ensure that the mechanisms are widely used by and benefit relevant local civil society in eligible countries within the region, especially those involved in the co-design process.

Objective 3: To advocate for policies and practices that support the long-term sustainability of the resourcing mechanisms implemented in each region and encourage other civil society organisations, allies and enablers to contribute to and strengthen the general and digital support infrastructure for local civil society promoting inclusive democracy in the global south.

SCOPE OF WORK OF THIS TOR

The Digital Democracy Initiative team at CIVICUS seeks an experienced civil society organization or consortium in the Middle East and North Africa region to act as a regional host partner. The selected partner will engage in a one-year project to adapt, develop, launch, and implement two prototyped financial and non-financial resourcing mechanisms co-designed by local civil society.

OVERALL DESCRIPTION OF REGIONAL MECHANISMS

As part of the DDI, CIVICUS is working towards the implementation of financial and non-financial mechanisms across 7 regions. 

The Financial Support Mechanism should aim to provide sub-grants to grassroots civil society actors in eligible countries within the region, and to facilitate initiatives focused on improving inclusive democracy and maintaining a healthy civic space at national, sub-national, or regional levels.

The Non-Financial Support Mechanisms are expected to offer technical assistance and accompaniment at both individual and institutional levels, ensure local civil society actors are adequately equipped to work on the project’s thematic focus.

Technical assistance will be provided by advisors engaged by regional host partners, preceded by capacity assessments to identify gaps and needs. The host partners will ensure local collaborators have the necessary tools and support to use digital technologies effectively for enhancing civic space and democracy. This includes self-assessment, capacity strengthening plans, and risk mitigation measures in line with the project’s “do no harm” principles.

Financial support available through the mechanisms is expected to cover costs for:

– Strengthening organizational systems and policies.

– Enhancing programmatic work and mobilizing communities for inclusive democracy and civic space.

– Acquiring new digital infrastructure, equipment, software, technical support, training, campaign materials, and promotional activities.

Host partners will actively engage with communities involved in the co-design process and manage significant sub-granting work, ensuring successful launch and long-term sustainability of the mechanisms. They will also implement comprehensive communication and advocacy strategies to raise awareness and encourage local CSOs and allies to utilize and support the mechanisms.

REGIONAL MECHANISM HOST RESPONSIBILITIES

As part of the implementation of the co-design prototypes, selected host partners are responsible for:

1. Manage major grants and sub-grants.

2. Work closely with diverse civil society actors in their region.

3. Engage in peer learning and innovation transference with regional co-design partners and other support mechanism hosts.

4. Contribute to the project’s learning and knowledge-sharing dimension through online exchanges, developing learning materials, and sharing best practices.

REQUIRED EXPERTISE

 Host partners must demonstrate:

• • Outstanding financial, management, grantmaking, advocacy, and programmatic capacity.
  • Extensive experience in developing and implementing medium-to-large-scale civil society projects at a regional level.
  • Proven ability to operate and iterate resourcing and support mechanisms.
  • Commitment to principles such as diversity, local leadership, gender and youth inclusion, peer learning, and “do no harm.”

EXPECTED OUTCOME

By the end of this grant, the following outcomes are anticipated in each region:

1. Strengthened and more accessible support infrastructure and ecosystems that enable increased use of digital technology to promote inclusive democratic spaces by a diverse range of local civil society actors.

2. Enhanced capacities of diverse local collaborators through financial and non-financial resources, including locally tailored and resilience-building technical assistance.

OUTPUTS CONTRIBUTING TO THE EXPECTED OUTCOME

To achieve the above outcomes, the following outputs are expected from the implementation of this grant:

1. Financial Support Mechanisms:

• • Expansion or strengthening of existing financial support mechanisms, or creation of new mechanisms if needed, based on regional co-design exercises.
  • Engagement of local collaborators by regional host partners, including both formal and informal civil society representing diverse and traditionally excluded communities.

2. Non-Financial Support Mechanisms:

• • Expansion or strengthening of existing non-financial support mechanisms, or creation of new mechanisms if needed, based on regional co-design exercises.
  • Engagement of local collaborators by regional host partners, including both formal and informal civil society representing diverse and traditionally excluded communities.

3.  Sub-Grants Utilization:

• • Use of sub-grants by resourcing mechanism host partners to design, develop, and implement financial and non-financial support mechanisms.
  • Use of sub-grants by local collaborators to develop digital capacities that strengthen inclusive democracy both online and offline.

4. Campaigns and Advocacy:

• • Implementation of campaigns and advocacy actions at all levels to influence civil society, donors, enablers, and allies, aiming to further strengthen the ecosystem supporting local pro-democracy civil society actors.

INDICATORS AND TARGETS  

Indicators to quantify and measure the achievement of the four (4) outputs above are highlighted in the table below. Each grant at a minimum must achieve the underlisted targets for the indicators in each region. The proposals must clearly state how targets will be achieved throughout the grant’s life cycle.