Contracting authority: European Commission

CSF III Call for proposals for large grants 2019

Annex A.1 – Grant application form - Concept note

Lot 3: Gender equality, women’s and girls’
[Number & title of lot]
empowerment and protection
Initiative for Integrated Women Economic
Title of the action:
Empowerment (IIWEE) Project
Name of the lead applicant Wako Gutu Foundation (WGF)
Nationality of the lead applicant Ethiopian

Dossier No

(For official use only)

1. CONCEPT NOTE
1.1. Summary of the action
The overall objective of this project is to enhance the livelihood of
poor and marginalized women in the target districts (impact level)
The specific objective of the project is to bring sustainable
changes in economic capacity of poor and marginalized women in
the target districts with the following results (outcome level)
Result I: Increased income for 5000 SHG and VSLCs members
[from baseline, to be determined during the initial baseline
Objectives of the action
assessment] value by 25%
Result II: 10 Empowerment centres for women established,
furnished and sustainably provide services
Result III: 9000 (5000 SHG and VSLCs and SHGs members, and
4,000 government experts) individuals sustainably capacitated
through an enterprise-based TVET and group-based capacity
building
Target group(s) 11,000 people
Final beneficiaries 70,000 people
Output I.1: Poor and marginalized women become self-reliant on
incomes from IGAs and small group business they run
Output II.1: Multi-purpose empowerment centres for women
Estimated outputs
readily available
Output III.1: Changes in women’s Knowledge, skills and practices
to engage on income generating activities
Result I:
 Beneficiary identification/recruitment and validation
 Formation of self- help (SHG) groups and village saving and
lending communities (VSLCs) groups, (150 SHGs and 100
VSLCs)
 Establish revolving fund and social fund for SHGs and
Main activities VSLCs including opening account, selection of committee,
etc.
 Constituting by-laws for SHGs and VSLCs
 Develop engagement- specific business plans SHGs and
VSLCs, 15 business plans
 Linking SHGs and VSLCs with local banks and micro-finance
institutions (MFIs)
 Result II:
 Establish empowerment centers for women, 10
empowerment centers
 Equip the empowerment centers with facilities
 Mobilize resources [both cash and in-kind] from the SHGs
and VSLCs for the center using individual pledges, members
contribution, 2 local fund-raising events
 Partner with local government offices and private
organizations to rent the centers for fee-for-service like
meetings to generate income
 Host monthly meetings of SHGs and VSLCs
 Develop record-keeping and checklists for SHGs and VSLCs
 Develop Management information system (MIS) for SHGs
and VSLCs
Result III:
 Training on selection planning and management (SPM ) of
income generating activities, 3 events
 Training on Non formal Business Education (NFBE) and group
dynamics to SHGs and VSLCs, 3 events
 Basic skills training for SHG and SLCS members on
accounting, record management, leadership, cash
management, saving, etc., 5 events
 Technical training [enterprise-based TVET] on beekeeping,
embroidery, beauty salon, mat-making, goat and sheep
rearing, irrigation farming, backyard gardening, petty trading,
10 events
 Training of local government experts from women’s affairs,
small and micro-enterprise,district cooperative, district finance,
district agriculture and water offices, NGOs and Cbos locally
implementing similar interventions, 6 events
 Mentoring and coaching to SHGs and VSLCs, phased 5
months
 Exposure visits for SHGs and VSLCs to other districts or
regions, 3 times learning and sharing visits
 Celebration of World Women's Day, 2 inaugural events
Description of the action: cover all the 5 points in the instructions: (max 2 pages)
The project titled as ‘Initiative for Integrated Women Economic Empowerment (IIWEE) Project
‘ is to be implemented in seven districts namely, Dallo Mana, Madda Wallabu, Hidhabou Abote, Kuyu,
Horro, Walliso) of Oromia National Regional State. In the envisaged project districts, women's participation
in economic agendas remains a challenge. The persistent burden of poverty; unequal access to resources
and participation in economic policy making; inequality in access to skills development and training; and
inequality with men and in the sharing of power and decision making are some of the major challenges
women face.
Poverty is highly gendered and feminized, with women constituting the poorest of the poor in the target
districts. Furthermore, most of the poor women do not have access to credit because they have no
collateral. They are also forced to play a very sub-ordinate status to their male counterparts both at home
and outside. Further, they are either compelled to work within the confines of the household and if they are
working outside they are generally engaged in low-paid field activities which do little to enhance their self-
esteem and socio economic status. They are in-capacitated due to various reasons such as; most of them
are socially backward, illiterate, with low motivation and poor economic base. They also lack access to the
knowledge and information.
Notwithstanding the above plethora of challenges, researches show that women who start to earn money
invest it in their children and their home, therefore enabling society as a whole to benefit from their economic
progress. Women tend to use resources more productively than men do and they tend to invest the majority
of their income in the household and for their children, and they tend to undertake small, manageable
activities rather than risky ventures that could bankrupt families. Women entrepreneurs’ associations play a
key role in women’s economic empowerment. In concrete terms, this involves helping women to start and
run companies that can generate income for them and their families. If, women are given the chance to
make their voices heard, they can work with lobbying to achieve better conditions, they become independent
and they play a part in social development.
With the philosophy that groups with collective identity offer spaces and support, foster a sense of
belonging, and help the formation of leadership organizations that are used to promote savings and access
to credit like self-help groups, village saving and lending communities associations, saving and loans groups
enable access to economic resources for the most vulnerable. In tandem with this argument, the project is
grounded on the CARE’s theory of change narrated as If women’s agency and ability to influence economic
decision-making (individually and collectively) is increased and utilized in inclusive and effective spaces for
negotiation; if women’s productive/economic role is expanded and recognized within households and wider
society as well as promoted, upheld and respected by power-holders; then women will have greater and
more equal access to and control over economic resources, opportunities and assets as well as ultimately
achieving equal benefits and return for their economic contribution. This sees economic empowerment of
women as a key contributing factor to overall empowerment of women and thereby to equality between
women and men.
The project is framed with Generate Your Business, Start Your Business, and Improve Your Business
concept through an enterprise-based TVET and group-based capacity building training and mentoring or
coaching of beneficiaries is continuously provided.
As start-ups, Small revolving fund will be made available and members are required to save their money in
the groups’ account based upon which they later access moderate credit. The credit modality also follows a
pattern of solidarity lending in which each member of the micro-enterprises will become a guarantor of the
other.
It is assumed that relevant government sectors are fully committed to support the SHGs and VSLCs through
technical support and training on business plan, and conduct supportive supervision.
With the same token, beneficiary women are assumed to show dedication and efforts to engage and run
income generating enterprises.
Since, some of the districts (dallo mana and Madda Wallabu) are prone and epicenters of ethnic tensions,
the project anticipates a risk of business interruption and arson attacks on businesses.
Also, the poor women may disproportionately use the resources for household consumption.
The project will integrate capacity building, “Do No Harm” and “Leave No One Behind” principles as
transverse/cross-cutting themes.
Relevance of the action (max 3 pages)
Relevance to the objectives/sectors/themes/specific priorities of the call for
proposals
This project aligns with the EU’s Gender Action Plan 2016-2020 (referred to as GAP II) commitment towards
Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment (GEWE) of initiative to promoting the social and economic
rights / empowerment of women and girls. The aim of this intervention is to enhance the livelihood of women
in the target districts through integrated women economic empowerment (IWEE) which is in line with the
specific objective of this call: strengthening the sustainability and contribution of CSOs, including those
working on gender equality and women’s empowerment, and of women’s groups to the development and
democratization process. For realization of the set objectives, the project is expected to undertake the
following actions: situational and baseline assessment (village level assessment including baseline survey
and PRA exercises to collect detailed demographic information of target villages), participatory stakeholder
consultations and pre-group formation meetings, beneficiary identification/recruitment and validation,
formation of self- help (SHG) groups and village saving and lending communities (VSLCs) groups,
constituting by-laws for SHGs and VSLCs, develop engagement- specific business plans SHGs and VSLCs,
establish empowerment centers for women, host monthly meetings of SHGs and VSLCs, record-keeping
and checklists for SHGs and VSLCs, management information system (MIS) for SHGs and VSLCs, linking
SHGs and VSLCs with local banks and micro-finance institutions (MFIs), develop training modules on
(members, leadership, and elections, social fund, share purchase, and credit policies, development of the
group constitution, savings meeting, loan meeting, loan repayment, action audit/share-out and graduation),
deliver training on selection planning and management (SPM )of income generating activities, deliver
training on Non formal Business Education (NFBE), training on group dynamics to SHGs and VSLCs,
leadership development, accounts and bookkeeping, SHGs and VSLCs exposure visits, celebration of W orld
Women's Day, provide technical assistance in the form of mentoring and coaching to SHGs and VSLCs,
The project conforms with the African Union Gender Strategy (2018-2027) GOAL: Full Gender Equality in all
spheres of life (Goal 17, Agenda 2063) and associated pillar one: economic empowerment and sustainable
development specific objective: Promote the growth of women enterprises from the small time to the big time
through a Women and Business programme to ease women’s entrance in high return industries; go beyond
micro-finance for women; and harness e-trade as part of the Pan African E-Network (one of the flagship
projects of Agenda 2063).
The action also complies with the Sustainable development goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower
all women and girls, and also supports the Ethiopian Growth and Transformation Plan phase 2 [GTP II] ‘s
Women and Youth Empowerment with strategic directions: Ensuring the active participation of these women
and youth organizations in the development and governance programs of the country, and ascertain equity
in benefiting women and youth from the resultant development and governance outcomes and targets:
Develop Women empowerment, participation and ensure their benefits.
Relevance to the particular needs and constraints of the target
country/countries, region(s) and/or relevant sectors (including synergy
with other EU initiatives and avoidance of duplication)
For more than ten years, with support from Protestant for Diakonia and Development-Bread for the World
(PADD), Wako Gutu Foundation created over 20 self-help groups in the districts of Dallo Mana and Mada
Wallabu, Bale Zone. The SHGs has been organized on rearing of she-goats and promoting saving by
initially providing revolving funds. Most of the women beneficiaries are female-headed and hitherto
predisposed to live with precarious income and genuinely demonstrated their potential for transformation
due to this project.
Interim reports and evaluations, and discussions with staffs of Education For Development Association
(EFDA) justified that women in the intervention districts, Horro and Walliso are anxious to engage in
alternative income generating activities mainly on SHGs and VSCLs models which they found it successful.
With the financial auspices of PESTALOZZI CHILDREN FOUNDATION, CIVIL SOCIETY SUPPORT
PROGRAMME (CSSP), and SWISS INTERCHURCH AID/HEKS), the organization has established more
than 20 SHGS with most of them graduated and deposited capital amounting more than 400,000.00
Ethiopian Birr.
One of the consortium members, Shalom Humanitarian Development Association (SHDA) is well placed in
Hidabou Abote district implementing Active Citizenship project financed by British Council mainly focused to
job creation for women and girls. This has organized village level women led jobs like green area/recreation
resorts, micro and small enterprises. Reports of this organization also verified the high demands and
scarcity of initiatives engaged on women empowerment. Currently, the organization has established and
supporting 44 SHGs through the technical and financial support of Geneva Global.
There are no EU financed projects in the districts covered by this special response and hence no duplication
of efforts. Regarding the existing projects financed by other donors, most are on the phase-out, and they are
very essential for self-replication and even scale-out to other districts by this EU-fund as a complementing
and catalysing factor since the beneficiary demand is voluminous.
Describe and define the target groups and final beneficiaries, their needs and
constraints, and state how the action will address these needs
Target Group 1: poor and illiterate rural women [10% female headed or widowed] are relegated to economic
marginalization, deprived of opportunities for business and technical skills that can enable them generate
income for them and their families. Therefore, this project will group 5,000 women according to their
similarity of interests in to SHGs and VSLCs to create synergy and common action through common voice.
Target Group 2: local government and non-governmental experts from relevant offices like women’s affairs,
small and micro-enterprise, TVET, agriculture, cooperative, and others have significant gap in designing a
tailored training and business plans preparation. Moreover, most of the poor women are illiterate in business
skills, technical\vocational skills which still need intensive capacity building training. Thus, 4,000 individuals
will be envisaged to be sustainably enhanced in business knowledge, skills and practices.
Target group 3: Community based informal saving and lending\social capital institutions like IDIR, Ekub,
women-led micro-enterprises and petty traders will acquire knowledge and skills either through direct
participation in the workshops, word-of-mouth information sharing, or publication materials like leaflets,
business plans. 2,000 individuals are envisaged to be addressed under this target group.
Final Beneficiaries: Through the extra income generated and skills created, this project is estimated to
benefit 70,000 members of families of these above-mentioned target groups through its spill-over and ripple
effects
Particular added-value elements
Most micro-finance institutions emphasize credit than savings with accompanied high interest rates. In
reality the poorest people need to focus on asset accumulation and protection before shouldering debt
[credit]. Also, SHGs and VSLCs are a very low-cost system based on voluntary administration [members-
owned] with minimal capital costs and no recurrent or transaction costs. It has also social fund aside during
members’ financial crisis, emergency like weddings, funeral, and accidental issues.
The project will also capitalize the already existing community based social structures like SIQQEE, GADA
Confederacies/structures, during the project selection, planning, implementation, and monitoring/evaluation.

Lead applicant, (co-applicants and affiliated entities, if any)

Name of the lead applicant Wako Gutu Foundation (WGF)

EuropeAid ID ET-2015-CMK-0309155051
Nationality/ Country and date of registration Ethiopia, 2006
Legal Entity File number (if available) Registered as an Ethiopian Charity with Registration
Number (0457)
Legal status Non-profit making

Lead applicant contact details for the purpose of this action

Postal address of the organisation: 1181

Organisation email address: [email protected]

Telephone: (fixed and mobile) (+251) 0115318049
Country code + city code + number +251 911043027
Fax:nCountry code + city code + number (+251) 011531-80-63
Contact person for this action: Abdi Edao
Postal address:
Contact person’s email:

Co-applicant 1
Name of the co-applicant Shalom Humanitarian Development Association (SHDA)
Europe Aid ID
Nationality/ Country and date of registration Ethiopia 2009
Legal Entity File number (if available) 1957
Legal status Non-profit making
Co-applicant 2
Name of the co-applicant Education For Development Association (EFDA)
Europe Aid ID
Nationality/ Country and date of registration Ethiopia, June 1999
Legal Entity File number (if available) Registered as an Ethiopian Charity with Registration
Number (0035)
Legal status Non-profit making
Title of the action: Initiative for Integrated Women Economic
Empowerment (IIWEE) Project

[Lot number you are applying to: ] Lot 3

Location(s) of the action: Dallo Mana, Madda Wallabu, Hidhabou
Abote, Kuyu, Horro, Waliso districts
Total duration of the action (months): 30 Months
Requested EU contribution (amount) Four hundred seventy five thousand
(475,000.00) Euro
Requested EU contribution as a percentage of 95‫ﻟ‬%
the total eligible costs of the action (indicative)

Project details
2. DE CL AR AT I O N BY T HE L E AD AP P LI C ANT
The lead applicant, represented by the undersigned, being the authorised signatory of the lead
applicant, and in the context of the present application, representing any co-applicant(s) and
affiliated entity(ies) in the proposed action, hereby declares that:
i. the lead applicant has the sources of financing and professional competence and qualifications
specified in Section 2 of the guidelines for applicants;
ii. the lead applicant undertakes to comply with the obligations foreseen in the affiliated entities'
statement of the grant application form and with the principles of good partnership practice;
iii. the lead applicant is directly responsible for the preparation, management and implementation of the
action with the co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies), if any, and is not acting as an intermediary;
iv. the lead applicant, the co-applicant(s) and the affiliated entity(ies) are not in any of the situations
excluding them from participating in contracts which are listed in Section 2.6.10.1. of the practical
guide (available from the following Internet address:
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/prag/document.do?locale=en. Furthermore, it is recognised and
accepted that if the lead applicant, co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies) (if any) participate in spite
of being in any of these situations, they may be excluded from other procedures in accordance with
the Financial Regulation in force;
v. the lead applicant and each co-applicant and affiliated entity are in a position to deliver immediately,
upon request, the supporting documents stipulated under Section 2.4 of the guidelines for
applicants;
vi. the lead applicant and each co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies) (if any) are eligible in
accordance with the criteria set out under Sections 2.1.1 and 2.1.2 of the guidelines for
applicants;
vii. if recommended to be awarded a grant, the lead applicant, the co-applicant(s) and the affiliated
entity(ies) accept the contractual conditions as laid down in the standard grant contract annexed to
the guidelines for applicants (Annex G) (or the Contribution Agreement where the lead applicant is
an organisation whose pillars have been positively assessed by the European Commission);
We acknowledge that if we participate in spite of being in any of the situations listed in Section 2.6.10..1 of
the practical guide or if the declarations or information provided prove to be false we may be subject to
rejection from this procedure and to administrative sanctions in the form of exclusion and financial penalties
up to 10 % of the total estimated value of the grant being awarded and that this information may be
published on the Commission website in accordance with the Financial Regulation in force. We are aware
that, for the purposes of safeguarding the EU’s financial interests, our personal data may be transferred to
internal audit services, to the early detection and exclusion system, to the European Court of Auditors, to the
Financial Irregularities Panel or to the European Anti-Fraud Office. Signed on behalf of the lead applicant

Name Abdi Edao

Signature

Position Executive Director

Date May 21/2019