1

CALL FOR COMMUNICATION, AWARENESS RAISING AND DEVELOPMENT

EDUCATION ACTIVITIES IN ROMANIA IN THE FIELD OF DEVELOPMENT

COOPERATION

Application guidelines

The RomanianMinsitry of Foreign Affaris (MFA) and the United Nations Development Programme

(UNDP) are launching a call for communication, awareness raising and development education projects

and activities in the field of development cooperation, addressed to civil society organizations,

education institutions (schools, high-schools, universities), and the mass media.

Interested organizations are invited to submit their proposal/s by Monday, 23 June 2014, 11.00 AM, by

using the template provided in Annex 2. Proposals should be sent via e-mail to Teodora Zafiu, at

teodora.zafiu@undp.org and Anca Stoica at anca.stoica@undp.org. Kindly ensure that your application

is limited to a maximum of 4,9 MB and free from any virus or corrupted files.

When preparing your applications, please be guided by the Terms of Reference attached hereto as

Annex 1 and the evaluation form available in Annex 3. All applications received in due time will be

evaluated and scored according to the evaluation criteria. The applications with the highest scores will

be considered successful.

For any questions and inquiries, please contact Teodora Zafiu via e-mail or at +40740549748.

2

Annex 1

Terms of Reference

(ToRs)

Background

In 2007,following its accession to the European Union (EU), Romania has become donor of official

development assistance (ODA), offering financial support to developing countries and contributing in

this way to the global efforts to eradicate extreme poverty world-wide. Since then, Romania has strived

to position itself on the international development arena as an innovative donor, with the main

comparative advantage of being able to share its direct experience and knowledge in the democratic

transition and Euro-Atlantic integration processes. Romanias strategic objective in development

cooperation is to contribute to poverty reduction by promoting security and economic welfare,

state of law, sustainable economic development, climate change mitigation and investments in

education, complementing international efforts in the field. Romanias ODA partner countries are:

the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Tunisia, Libya,

Palestine, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), established in 2005, represent important guidelines

for Romanias work as donor of ODA. In 2015, the MDGs will come to an end, and new Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs) will be set to guide the international efforts towards promoting a more

equal and inclusive world. Throughout the year, national and international consultations have been

led to identify priorities for a better world with over 2 million people having voted globally so far.

The findings of the consultations represent a critical input into the high-level discussions that will

set the post-2015 global agenda. In Romania, consultations have been led at all levels of society

(general public, NGOs, Government). In this context, citizens understanding and support for the

SDGs should be further strengthened and their engagement in the implementation of the future

post-2015 agenda encouraged.

The EU has also engaged in setting a common approach for the post-2015 agenda. On this context,

to mark the end of the MDGs, the EU has declared 2015 as the European Year for Development

(EYD). The EYD aims to:

inform EU citizens about the EU and the Member States' development cooperation, in line with the latest discussions on the overarching post-2015 framework;

foster direct involvement, critical thinking and active interest of EU citizens and stakeholders in development cooperation including in policy formulation and

3

implementation;

to raise awareness on the benefits of the EU's development cooperation not only for beneficiaries of the EU's development assistance but also for EU citizens and to achieve a broader understanding of policy coherence for development, and foster among citizens in Europe and developing countries a sense of joint responsibility, solidarity and opportunity in a changing and increasingly interdependent world.

As national coordinator of Romanias international development cooperation policy, the MFA is

interested in raising peoples awareness and understanding on development cooperation and Romanias

efforts in the field. In this sense, the MFA has drafted a national communication, awareness raising and

development education strategy, participated in various development-related events and elaborated

communication materials. In 2009, the MFA also conducted a public campaign in Romania, in order to

raise awareness on the Millennium Development Goals, Romanias role as a donor country, and how

citizens, NGOs and local authorities can contribute to supporting aid, development and poverty

mitigation world-wide.

The current communication efforts of the MFA are implemented in partnership with the UNDP

through the New ODA Cooperation Partnership with Romania project, whose objective is to assist

Romania in becoming an effective, innovative and increasingly influential actor for development

cooperation so it can achieve sustainable, scalable development impact in the countries that are a

priority of Romanian ODA.

General Objective:

In the context of the 2015-agenda and in preparation of the European Year for Development, the

Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to continue its efforts in:

raising the level of understanding and awareness among the general public with regards to the international development cooperation;

encouraging citizens active engagement in development cooperation.

The initiative also aims to prepare the Romanian citizens about the organization of the European

Year for Development in 2015, in close cooperation with the civil society, line ministries and the

general public.

Specific Objectives:

The MFA in partnership with the UNDP are interested in financing communication and awareness raising

activities in order to:

4

a) Increasing public awareness on the importance of the international development cooperation

to help reduce poverty and support global growth;

b) Informing the large public on Romanias development cooperation policy, highlighting the

results it has achieved as a global actor and will continue to achieve in the context of the post

2015- SDG framework;

c) Promoting citizens (particularly youngsters) and stakeholders involvement and interest in

development cooperation, including in policy formulation and implementation;

d) Facilitating dialogue with ODA partner countries on the priorities of thepost-2015 development

agenda;

e) Initiating discussions around the themes and events of the European Year for Development, in

preparation of the national plan for the organization of the EYD in 2015.

Eligible initiatives:

Within a maximum ceiling of 6.000 USD/grant, eligible initiatives can include, but are not limited to:

a) Information, Communication and awareness-raising campaigns to disseminate key messages on development cooperation and post 2015-development agenda (SDGs) targeting the general public and/or more specific audiences, including through social media (local-level campaigns are highly encouraged);

b) Events that promote active participation and debate and raise awareness on development cooperation; examples include conferences, university/high-school lectures, school-events and exhibitions;

c) Project proposals that are centered around the themes of the MDGs /SGDs and international development, raising awareness of the target groups on the broad and specific issues connected to the achievement of the MDGs as well as Romanias contribution as a donor country in the global architecture of international development. Proposals may target one or more MDGs / topics related to SDGs (examples of project activities: sport or cultural events with a development thematic focus)

d) Public events around the following international days: International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (17 October); Human Rights Day (10 December), etc.

e) Any other type of event/project that directly addresses one or more of the objectives mentioned above.

Innovative approaches in implementing the communication campaigns/projects are highly encouraged.

Action-oriented projects and concrete results must be demonstrated.

Partnerships with various institutions and organizations are encouraged:

1. With media, private sector, formal education institutions (universities/ faculties/ high schools / schools) and local public authorities;

2. With organizations from Romanias partner countries. Cross-border projects are also encouraged.

5

3. With large cultural events that have a wide public exposure (e.g. film/theatre/music festivals, urban festivals).

Minimum number of direct beneficiaries for each grant: 100.

Projects with a wider public exposure are encouraged.

Examples of eligible costs include, but are not limited to:

1. Expenses related to events organization, such as: venue rental costs, rental of technical equipment; etc

2. Travel costs/fees for speakers/lecturers/resource persons; 3. Travel costs for participants from other regions/countries; 4. Promotional/visibility materials (including online materials);

Administrative costs, such as logistical expenses for the project team, can be supported from the project

budget, but they should not exceed 10% of the requested amount.

Visual identity

The information materials (posters, brochures, leaflets, banners etc) produced by the implementing

organization under this call for proposals must contain the visual identity of the Romania MFA, Romania

ODA, and the UNDP (details to be provided upon grant awarding).

The selected organization will be responsible for assuring the visibility of the project online and off-line.

Call open to:

The call is open to civil society organizations; education entities (schools, high-schools, universities);

mass media. Applicants should have experience in public campaigning on social or civic issues in the

community.

6

Annex 2

Application Form

Below are questions to help us understand your idea: what vision you have for the initiative

you are proposing and how you intend to implement it

We strongly recommend that you answer these questions in a clear, concise, and logical

manner. Please use clear arguments. Be brief and convincing.

1. Tell us briefly about your experience in public campaigning on social or civic issues in the community, or broad communication and awareness raising activities? (max. 200 words)

(EXPERIENCE)

2. Present your idea that meets the objectives mentioned in the ToRs, in one paragraph.

(OBJECTIVE OF PROPOSED INITIATIVE)

3. Tell us about how you intend to implement your idea. You should briefly describe the activity(ies) of

your proposed initiative. Where will the activities be implemented? Who are your beneficiaries and how you plan to involve them? (Max. 300 word)

(ACTIVITY, LOCATION, TARGET GROUP)

4. What are the results you intend to achieve through your project/initiative? What are the outputs & indicators of your project? Please make sure they are clear and measurable. (max. 200 words)

7

(OUTPUTS &INDICATORS)

5. What resources do you need for your activity? The most convincing proposals will be funded with up to USD 6,000 per initiative (please provide a detailed breakdown of expenses in USD, including co-financed amount, if this is the case).

PROJECT BUDGET *Please add or delete rows as necessary

Main categories of expenditures Amount (USD)

Co-financing

Total

6. What do you estimate to be total outreach of the project/activity?

(OUTREACH)

7. How will you assure the visibility of the initiative during implementation? What is your visibility

plan to further communicate your idea to a broader public? Will visibility be maintained after the activities have ended? please explain how (max. 150 words)

(VISIBILITY PLAN)

8. Who are the main partners you will work with? Is your planned activity a cross-border initiative? We would like to understand more about the type of partners and their roles in putting your idea to action. Will your partners help you in reaching a wider public audience? (max. 150 words)

(PARTNERSHIPS)

8

9. Please explain to us why your idea is exceptional or innovative. (max. 100 words)

(PERSONAL STATEMENT)

NAME OF THE APPLICANT:

LOCATION:

DATE:

9

Annex 3

Evaluation Criteria

Evaluation of Proposed Initiative

Maximum Points

Obtainable

2.1. Previous experience 5

2.2 Relevance. The following aspects will be taken into consideration:

10 Relevance of the proposed initiative in relation with the general and specific objectives mentioned in the ToRs

10

2.3 Project Management. The following aspects will be taken into consideration:

35

Objective clearly articulated 10

Well-chosen location in relation with the mentioned objectives 4

Target group(s) clearly defined 6

Concrete results demonstrated 10

Financial efficiency (budget) 5

2.4 Visibility. The following aspects will be taken into consideration:

27 Level of public outreach 10

Visibility plan clearly elaborated 10

Presence in a large event with wide public outreach 7

2.5 Partnerships created 5

2.6 Cross-border initiative 3

2.7 Co-financing 5

2.8 Convincing/innovative project (answer to question 6 of Annex 3) 10

100