SMALL-SCALE INITIATIVES PROGRAMME

Small-scale initiatives programme

The Small-Scale Initiatives (SSI) programme was set up in 2006 to support civil society groups in African countries that are actively involved in biodiversity protection and climate change action, by providing grants to low-budget projects.

 

Protection - Communities - Education - Environment - Biodiversity - Development - Climate

  • A programme to help civil society to :

    • Carry out field projects in West and Central Africa, Madagascar and Mozambique,             
    • Build up technical capacities for project processing, management and monitoring,
    • Strengthen a network for monitoring small-scale projects in West and Central Africa,       
    • Strenghten its capacities for influencing environmental policy choices in the countries concerned,
    • Share and disseminate its experiences and successes.

  • Two calls for projects are issued each year, with the 10 to 15 best projects selected in each case.

    The FGEF contributes a maximum of 50 000 € to each project.

    The grant covers a maximum of 50% of the total when the project is co-financed by international agencies or NGOs, rising to 75% when the remainder is financed from local sources only (populations, NGOs, local government or local financial partners).

     

    How to present a project ?

Reasons for the SSI programme

  • What are the aims of the SSI programme in practice ?

    The SSI programme helps civil society groups to take practical action in the field, to improve their capacities for setting up, managing and monitoring projects and to strengthen their ability to influence environmental policy choices in their countries and to share their experiences. Their enhanced credibility in turn attracts other sources of financing.

  • Why in French-speaking Africa ?

    Historically,

    Africa is the main target region for French cooperation. Furthermore, in comparison with English-speaking countries, civil society groups in French-speaking Africa are less well organized and lack specific means to address conservation issues.

     

     

     

  • Why small-scale projects ?

    The projects financed run for a maximum of two years. Each has received 34 000 € on average from the FGEF. These amounts are small compared to project costs of several million euros usually financed by agencies, but they are very important to enable NGOs to carry out activities in the field.