Capacity Building
As the name suggests, one of the priority activities for the Non State Actors Strengthening Programme was Capacity Building. The aim was to improve Non State Actors' organisational, managerial and fundraising capacities. Grantees and partners were given ongoing support by the PMU in the for of financial training and guidance and support in writing quarterly narrative reports.
Following the Call for Proposals and receipt of Concept Notes from Gambian NGOs, training was offered by the NSASP for the development of full proposals. Thirty-one organisations were selected to attend, based on the strength and relevance of their submitted Concept Notes. Following training, attendees were invited to submit proposals to the PMU with a view to being considered for the award of a grant. NSASP grantees were then selected from proposals submitted. |
In February 2011, training was provided by an International Consultant in Financial and Grant Management. The purpose of the training was to build the capacity of grantees in management set up and implementation prior to their project implementation period. The PMU worked closely with grantees to develop Financial Management Progress Reports, in order to assess the impact of training conducted.
The External Consultant worked alongside a local consultant and the PMU to review the first quarterly reports and address issues identified during the February training session. This came in the form of personalised consultations with each grantee, aiming to providing a pressure-free environment for representatives to raise issues and individual concerns. . |
Grantees' journey in terms of financial and organisational capacity development was supported through weekly drop-in sessions at the Programme Management Unit. The Programme Coordinator, Accountant and Monitoring and Evaluation Expert were available every Wednesday to address queries and offer guidance to grantees on all areas relating to activity implementation. Grantees were also able to email or telephone to arrange alternative meetings with PMU staff during the week.
To ensure ongoing support from the PMU, grantees benefited from financial and narrative monitoring and evaluation reviews and outreach sessions on a quarterly basis. Reports submitted by the grantees informed the M&E Expert and Accountant in conducting field visits to assess the progress of each organisation. The support helped the grantees to improve their reporting techniques in preparation for submission of their final reports. The two self-assessment reports submitted by each grantee also allowed them to reflect on the progress that they had made as organisations, as well as the lessons learnt and problems encountered in the process. |
The NSASP website underwent ongoing development throughout the Programme's activity period. The Resource Centre was developed with the intention of providing information for NSAs on Policies, Thematic Research, and organisational Best Practices. Through the NSASP's research and compilation of secondary data and reference materials, it is hoped that NSA organisations will be able to continue their own capacity building, in addition to supplementing proposal development and research activities. |