AWDF will be launching its new 5-year strategic plan 2011 – 2015 shortly. As part of the strategic plan, AWDF is reworking its grant making thematic areas. The six new thematic areas are:
- Women’s Human Rights
- Economic Empowerment and Livelihoods
- Governance, Peace and Security
- Reproductive Health and Rights
- HIV/AIDS
- Arts, Culture and Sports
Guidelines are being developed for each of the thematic areas and will be uploaded on AWDF’s website and various communication outlets on completion. A new schedule for grant applications will be published at the same time. Therefore, we are asking potential grant applicants to wait until after the thematic guidelines and the grant processing schedule are published before submitting any further applications. AWDF will not be processing new grants applications until that point. .
Meanwhile we will continue to process applications that we have already received and duly acknowledged, which have increased enormously over the past year.
Please watch out for the publication of the guidelines and the grant processing schedule. We look forward to working with both new and old partners on these new exciting thematic areas.
Theo Sowa
Interim Chief Executive Officer
AWDF
Dear Theo,
When i saw this important update on AWDF’s grant-making process this evening i was immediately attracted to the reworked grant making thematic areas. You and your team at AWDF deserve congratulation on directing your searchlight on Economic Empowerment& Livelihoods and Governance, Peace & Security. This is very apt considering the context in which we do our Women’s Rights work. Without good governance, peace and security in our communities and the economic empowerment of African women it becomes more challenging talking about women protecting, promoting and enjoying their rights. Indeed they are related and a holistic and intergrative approach through your funding efforts would in my opinion yield better and more sustainable impact. Well done.
Permit me to also congratulate our amiable sister, Her Excellency Bisi on this award. We are not surprised, indeed she deserves another oneon the role she played at the recently inaugurated Women Trust Fund in Nigeria : The first of its type in Africa to support women political aspirants. For her, we haven’t seen nothing yet! Some good efforts from Ekiti State will soon filter into the air, i am optimistic.
Thank you H E Bisi for doing us proud!!
Theo, please may i ask what happens to earlier proposal submitted?
Best Wishes,
Dr Lydia Umar
ED GAT
Dear Dr Umar,
Thank you for your feedback which is much appreciated. We also appreciate your congratulatory message to H.E.
The grants team will be responding to all proposals.
Warm Regards
Dear AWDF Team,
The new thematic areas represent how comprehensive AWDF now is and how the marginalized women across the globe shall be well covered. This believably will see African women reached with AWDF funded projects enjoy spectrum of changes in their lives.
Looking forward to the completed Strategic Plan.
Arnold J. Kituyi
ED, Better Health Action Group Uganda.
I hereby say kudos and weldone to the Executive Members of AWDF for the well designed programs, especiall ,Women Economic Empowerment. We are looking forward to the Grant Advert
Dear Theo,
I would like to get some information about how you support groups working in the area of girls education and Training. I feel this is an area that most orgarnizantion and governments pay lip service but do very litlle in practice. I live in Ireland and have been supporting an organization called Resource Agency for Girls Education and Training (RAGE&T) in Northen Tanzania for the past 5 years. Most donors prefer to support big, visible projects that promote their names. I wonder is yours another one of those kind of organizations? RAGE&T is a not for profit organizantion that manages a girls hostel, computer training, a school fees revolving fund and aims to built a small library for the girls. It has proved very difficult to get support from donors. can you help? have you representative in Tanzania who can visit the hostel and girls?
hi we are a agoup of community trained theatre proffesionals well versed with issues that affect the community especially women and girlchild.can we forward a proposal to surpport an awareness through popular community drama integrated with puppety.we will be very glad for postive feedback .we target the most vulnarable in the society
Dear Theo,
I want to congratulate the Executive Committee on the reorganization of the thematic areas. It is impresive that AWDF has noted the need for economic empwoerment of women and livelihoods. African women would not participate effectively in decision making because of lack of economic power and low household income.
Organizations like ours has been working on this with AWDF under the HIV/AIDS project and we have seen how women’s self esteem ahs improved because they have cash in their pocket and can spend on what they need without asking for permission.
Kudos
@ Miontini: Thank you very much for the concern raised. It is exactly for such concerns that the AWDF was set up to support women’s groups that would otherwise not have access to mainstream funding. One of AWDF’s flagship programmes is its small grants programme that seeks to support women’s groups mostly informal groups that work on enhancing the opportunities and lives of women. Most of the groups AWDF has supported in the past live in hard to reach areas such as very rural areas, riverine communities, mountainous areas and the like. Many of these organisations have no formal structures and many of them are low literate. Most of these groups and projects are not big and definitely not visible but very impactful on the lives of the women in the communities and so far have been very happy with this programme. All women’s groups/organisations who have been together for three years or more on the African Continent are welcomed to apply to the AWDF. However as per the information on our website organisations are entreated to apply next year.
@Dr Lydia Umar. Thanks for the enquiry. Please note that all applicants to the fund since the end of last year have been informed of the management decision.
Beatrice Boakye-Yiadom, AWDF’s Grants Manager
dear si/madam.organization called the defence of human rights in Tanzania wants to get grants making processes.we hope to hear more from you.
Cordially.
shikunzi obadia
coordinator
I, on behalf of our organisation Iyalode Wuraola Esan Foundation (Iwef), who are after the wellbeing of ladies and women in our society especially those from poor background, wish to commend AWDF for job well done especially in the area of Women Economic Empowerment and livelihoods. Women in Africa might now have reasons to live and smile again. We look forward to your grant advert soon.
i received the message about the thematic areas. though my organization (WCDF)is yet to benefit from your grant, we appreciate the information shared to us. i wish the guidelines will be out soon to enable us apply.meanwhile, may i know the state of our application we put in early this year?
best regards.
Dear AWDF Team,
This is a good news to us as a grantee. Let me use this medium to say welldone and you will continue to grow from strength to strength as you are working towards women issues in Nigeria
Dear AWDF,
Our organization,(CAREER AWARENESS AND YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CENTRE) is such that has the interest of the youths and women at heart and works strongly in these areas within our limited resources. Changing the lives of these groups in OYIGBO and other parts of RIVERS OF NIGERIA. Our major constraints has been how to get donors that understands our title beginning and be willing to support us including helping in building our capacities for greater efficiency in these great course of changing the lives of the most vulnerable groups among us. we want to inquire if your organization can support smaller NGO’s like ours and if we should forward a proposals for possible consideration.
Thanks
FROM- Michael Eleazu O.
DIRECTOR (CAYDEC)
email- caydecafrica@yahoo.co.uk
Dear AWDF
Thank you very much for the information you provide on funding opportunities. Here in Uganda, we would like to receive the grant guidelines as our focus is on working with rural women on HIV/AIDS, governance and livelihood.
Is Uganda eligible? can we get your website details
Regards
Charles you are on our website 🙂 We shall update via this site when grant applications can be sent in
Dear Theo Sowa and the AWDF Team,
we have noted with excitement the comprehensiveness of the new thematic areas adn wish to congratulate you all to this innovative approach. For Women and girls the integrated approach to addressing the issues affecting access to their rights is only sure way to address them, as thy are all intrinsicly linked. We look forward to receiving the new guidelines and to benefiting from the AWDF support
I am working with youths from Vocational training centres and have seen that in some instances it is the provisions that are in short supply. For example a college would rather have a boys hostel and nothing for girls or limited space. Such limits girls intake. Can I have information as to how your organizationcan help put infrastructures solely for girls? I need to lift this kind of group. additionally, there is need for a guarantee fund for girls only and I need to forster this. Shall we hold each other’s hands on this
I await your feedback
Dear AWDF, thanks so much for the information update regarding grant applications. We look forward to your continued support to our work. As advised we shall keep watch on the reviewed grant application.
Dear Theo Sowa,
This is the first time I am hearing about the fund and work around AWDF. I was just browing the net and lo and behold, you, AWDF!
However, I am glad to explore what you do further and also interested in Women’s Human Rights, Economic Empowerment and Livelihoods, Governance, Peace and Security, Reproductive Health and Rights, HIV and AIDS and Arts, Culture and Sports.
There are questions for me on how these themes of AWDF new strategy interact to either promote maternal health, access to justice for women and girls, girls’ education and gender. There is a project we are implementing in Malawi funded by DFID Malawi office on these areas.
The project is simply;
1. we sensitise and train journalists to report on these issues in development,
2. we provide them with little grants for their logistics in gathering news and information,
3. we link them to research/science, academia and other development actors for useful source of information,
4. they collate this with our editorial support, and
5. they publish/broadcast quality stories with input from academia, communities, policy makers, etc.
Please contact me on +260 211 263 258 or +260 977 883 630 or email, gillies@panos.org.zm.
Regards,
Gillies
I am very grateful to you AWDF for the systematic way you inform us on your programs. My work in Canhave Vocational School for HIV/AIDS victims is going to be an easy yoke with both moral and possibly grant supports in the areas stated in the strategic plan.This is going to be the most needed thematic methodology that is so practical especially in my duty of enabling these children to live positively and empower them with practical knowledge and skills.
TUWODEP is very grateful for the support you gave to the seven women groups.This small grant have really change the suitations of these rural women,also thier livelihoods have improved very much and there is now unity and happiness among the families of the various house hold in their communities.We hope to continue working with you to change many more suitations.