ScotGov Small Grants Programme announced

26 February 2015

We are delighted to inform members that Humza Yousaf MSP (Minister for International Development and Europe) has today announced over £450,000 for 15 Scottish based NGOs as part of the Scottish Government's Small Grants Programme.

We are delighted to inform members that Humza Yousaf MSP (Minister for International Development and Europe) has today announced over £450,000 for 15 Scottish based NGOs as part of the Scottish Government’s Small Grants Programme.

Seven of the 15 projects funded are for projects working in Malawi. Congratulations to all the organisations that have been awarded funding. We welcome the continued support from the Scottish Government which demonstrates its strong commitment to the shared history and people-to-people links between Scotland and Malawi.

Press Release from Scottish Government

To help support some of the world’s most vulnerable communities, this morning over £450,000 has been awarded to international development organisations operating in Scotland.

Fifteen projects to receive funding from the 2015-2016 Scottish Government’s international small grants programme were announced today by the Minister for International Development, Humza Yousaf.

The small grants programme is designed to help smaller Scottish organisations develop their scale, scope and long term ambitions. The funding supports smaller NGO’s to make a big impact to help reduce poverty worldwide.

This year’s projects include new self-assemble threshing machines for Malawi, a project using community sport to tackle HIV in Tanzania and a mobile phone app improving emergency care in Zambia.

To mark the awards, Mr Yousaf met one of the recipients of a grant Yes! Tanzania. Yes! Tanzania's funding will be used to deliver a health programme using sport to reduce new cases of HIV.

Mr Yousaf said:

“Working with smaller agencies opens the door to new solutions. This is the power of the small grants programme, it helps organisations at home realise their ambitions it helps the Scottish Government fulfil its role as a good global citizen and, most importantly, it helps some of the world’s most vulnerable people. Today’s funding will help initial ideas become pilot projects and brings the total invested over the past two year close to one million pounds.
“As well as improving the prospects of people abroad, international development work helps people in Scotland as well. Volunteering is important to broadening people’s outlook on the world and many of the organisations supported by small grants will be creating new opportunities to support their international projects.”

Yes! Tanzania is one of the beneficiaries of the small grants programme. In 2014 they used a grant from the small grants programme to conduct a feasibility study on using their network of sporting facilities to educate young people about the transmission of HIV. This year’s funding will put the lessons from this study into practice to work with schools and community centres.

Ken Campbell of Yes Tanzania said:

“The Scottish Government's Small international small grants programme has proved to be invaluable to YES! Tanzania. We were delighted last year to be awarded a 1-year grant which enabled us to carry out some much needed research into how health education through sport and can be used to help address the issues of HIV and AIDS which continues to have a significant impact on young people in Tanzania. We were also able to carry out a pilot programme to test the effectiveness of a peer leadership training course which we designed and delivered to students from the Umoja Centre, our local partner in Arusha, Tanzania, which provides educational opportunities for some of the poorest young people in the local community.”

“The success of the research and pilot programme provided us with the evidence and confidence to apply this year for funding for a 3-year project and we are delighted to hear that this has been successful. This will enable us to work with 3 local partners in Arusha, Tanzania to deliver sport and sexual health training to over 60 community sports coaches, teachers and peer leaders who will reach over 2,000 young people. We will also be able to measure the impact of the project and hopefully demonstrate that it has helped to reduce the number of young people contracting HIV.”

The International Development Fund’s small grants programme provides funding for Scottish based international development organisations working in the Scottish Government’s seven priority countries: Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zambia, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Indian States of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa.

Gillian Wilson, Chief Executive of Network of International Development Organisations in Scotland (NIDOS), said:

“NIDOS welcomes the Scottish Government’s announcement of the second round of Small Grants projects under its International Development Fund. It is great to see the Scottish Government supporting small, good quality projects working alongside some of the most excluded communities in Zambia, Tanzania, Malawi, Pakistan and India.

“These will enable communities to improve their livelihoods, tackle childhood illnesses and improve medical services, oppose discrimination against people living with disabilities, and access renewable energy and sustainable homes. We are encouraged to see many of the grants going to NIDOS member organisations who have worked to strengthen their effectiveness, many with support from NIDOS. This shows the clear link between effectiveness and fundraising success. We look forward to working alongside any of the successful grant holders who want to network and learn from each other or strengthen their approaches further.”

The programme is administered by Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland. Grants can be used for feasibility studies to scope out and assess impact, the delivery of projects or to build capacity within small Scottish international development organisations.

The programme is administered by Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland. Grants can be used for feasibility studies to scope out and assess impact, the delivery of projects or to build capacity within small Scottish international development organisations.

Fiona Duncan, Chief Executive of Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland, said:

“For 30 years, Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland has been a leading grant-maker in Scotland, running our own international development programme between 2003 and 2006. We have been delighted to apply our experience and expertise in administering the Scottish Government’s programme over the last two years, knowing that our role in supporting and assessing applicants results in robust grant awards that will make a real difference to the lives of some of the world’s most vulnerable citizens.”

Click here for more information on the projects.

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