Despite the valuable role of the Palestinian NGO sector, recent
years have witnessed significant reductions in their funding. In
the early 1990s, according to World Bank estimates, the NGO sector
received financial support of between U.S. $140 and U.S. $220
million a year from outside sources. By 1994, following the Gulf
War and the post-Oslo reallocation of bilateral funding to the
Palestinian National Authority (PNA), this amount had contracted to
about U.S. $90 million, and in 1995 and 1996 fell by as much as a
third again. Since 1993 many hospital and outpatient clinic
services have been cut, dozens of pre-schools closed and disability
programs discontinued. The speed and scale of the adjustment have
caused hardship and a dislocation in services, particularly for the
poor and disadvantaged.
Project Description
The Palestinian NGO Project establishes a multilateral mechanism to
finance NGO activities for the poor and marginalized. The project
is "demand-driven" in the sense that NGOs themselves, in
consultation with beneficiaries, put forward their own projects for
financing. Targeting of priority services is conducted on the basis
of a "Needs Assessment" drawn up in consultation with the NGO
sector. Work is currently underway to strengthen projects through
the formulation of a set of poverty alleviation and marginality
indicators. By supplementing, not substituting for, existing
channels of bilateral funding, the project helps sustain key NGO
services, strengthens the professional and technical capacities of
the NGO sector in the West Bank and Gaza (WBG) and strengthens
cooperative relations between NGOs and the PNA.
Project Design
The project was designed by World Bank staff with considerable
input from Palestinian and international NGOs and the PNA. The
project is being implemented by the Welfare Association Consortium
(consisting of the Welfare Association of Geneva, the British
Council and the Charities Aid Foundation of the UK). Twice each
year - the first cycle of grants commenced on July 30, 1998 - the
Project Management Organization (PMO) awards grants to local NGOs
on the basis of an open competition that is advertised widely in
the local media. Prior to each grant "round," the PMO consults
widely with all interested parties to obtain guidance on the areas
and sectors that should be given priority. The PMO then monitors
and supports sub-grant recipients, while providing management and
technical assistance to build implementation capacity for the
sub-project in the field.
The NGO Project Components
Development Grants are used to finance sub-projects that deliver
economic and social services to the poor and marginalized in
Palestinian society. A number of innovative approaches are being
developed, including the award of large block grants to
well-established NGOs which allows for on-granting to smaller
experimental sub-projects and less well-established NGOs in the
peripheral areas of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Grants are only
awarded where there is evidence of solid community approval.
Sub-projects currently span a spectrum of NGO activity, including
screening and rehabilitation of children with disabilities, child
health care, rural health clinics, pre-school education, social
programs for youth, vocational training for adult women including
disabled women, and environmental awareness in agricultural
communities.
NGO Recovery Grants are made available to NGOs facing significant
financial difficulties as a result of the loss of previous sources
of funding. Grants are given as part of an agreed financial
recovery program to assist NGOs to move towards improved financial
sustainability.
Research Grants and Resources for NGO Training and Capacity
Building Grants are awarded to qualified institutions and
individuals to support NGO sub-grant recipients to plan, manage and
monitor projects and for research studies designed to improve
information on and analysis of the sector. Funds are also being
used to support the development of modern legislation for the NGO
sector, for NGO governance issues, and for activities designed to
foster relations between the PNA and NGOs.
Project Development
The project has developed as follows: Inception Phase (July
1997-February 1998): On commencement of the project, the PMO
established two field offices in Gaza and the West Bank, recruited
qualified staff, and established its operations and its internal
governance structures, including a Supervisory Board with
Palestinian representation drawn from outside the immediate Welfare
Association Consortium framework. During this period, a needs
assessment for grant targeting and a wide-ranging consultation
process were completed.
Under the Pilot Grant Round (March-July 1998), details of the
project were widely disseminated and 500 NGO proposal packages were
distributed. By the closing dates the PMO had received 361 grant
proposals. After an intensive appraisal and selection process, and
following endorsement by the PNA Ministry of Planning and
International Cooperation, 39 eligible sub-projects were approved.
In total, U.S. $1,828,690 in assistance was committed following the
initial pilot grant round, with single grants ranging in value from
U.S. $12,444 to U.S. $102,000. Grants are geographically spread
between Gaza, Jerusalem and the West Bank, providing services in
both rural and urban areas. Implementation is proceeding apace with
all 39 projects in various stages of development. Disbursements
currently amount to U.S. $495,894.
Current Project Status (end-1998): The PMO is moving forward; a
second grant round formally commenced at the end of October 1998.
The round will encompass both development grants and block grants
(for on-granting by larger NGOs to smaller NGOs). Sectors covered
by the second grant round include civic and legal counseling,
non-formal and community education, formal education, housing,
income generating projects, health and social services and
agriculture. The PMO is projecting between U.S. $3.5 to U.S. $4
million in disbursements to sub-projects.
Project Financing
The estimated total cost of the project is U.S. $17 million. The
World Bank has provided U.S. $10 million and the Saudi Fund and the
Italian Government have provided U.S. $2.5 and U.S. $2.1 million
respectively. Additional funds have been provided by the United
Kingdom for technical assistance (£140,000). Communities
and/or grant recipients and the PMO will contribute some U.S. $1
million. An assessment is being conducted to establish the
feasibility of creating an independently endowed foundation for the
benefit of Palestinian NGOs.
From West Bank and Gaza Update - The World Bank Group (fourth
quarter, 1998).
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