Project Proposal Framework

General structure

·          Executive summary

·          Presentation of the organisation

·          Project background

·          Problem statement

·          Goal and objectives

·          Beneficiaries

·          Proposed methodology:                     

·          Partners

·          Project implementation

·          Activities

·          Risks and assumptions

·          Means

·          Budget

·          Monitoring and evaluation

·          Sustainability

·          Annexes

 1. Executive Summary

§          What do you propose to do?

§           Where?

§           Why?

§           For whom?

§           With whom?

§           For how long?

 2.  Presentation of the Organisation

Why is it important?

n        Purpose: to establish credibility and image of a well-managed organization that meets critical needs in its area of work

 Contents

n        Who are you?

n        Philosophy/ mandate?

n        History and significant interventions/track record

n        Expertise in addressing the problem/need

n        Organizational structure

n        Major sources of support

n        Affiliations/accreditations/ linkages

3. Project Background

 Contents

n        Who took the initiative?

n        Does the project fit into an existing development plan or programme?

n        Is this the first phase of the project, or the continuation of an activity already undergoing?

n        If this is the case, which have been the main result of the previous phase?

n        What studies have been done to prepare the project?

n        Who else operates in this field?

 4.  Problem Statement

Why is it important?

 Contents

n        Description of the scope and magnitude of the problem

n        What are the immediate causes of the problem?

n        What are the underlying causes of the problem?

n        What are the effects of the problem?

n        How does it affect people?

n        Why does it have to be addressed?

n        Why now and not later?

5.      Goal and Objectives: Describes the long-term goals, your project will contribute to.

 Project Purpose or Specific Objective:

Describes the objective of your project in response to the core problem.

Expected Results:

Describes the outputs or concrete results of your project.

Objectives should be SMART:

n        Specific = they must meet the needs (problems) identified

n        Measurable = they should be measured by concrete indicators which should reflect the extent to which they have been attained

n        Acceptable = by all involved partners

n        Relevant = they must be adequate to the project socio-cultural environment

n        Time-bound = must be reached by the end of the project

 6.  Beneficiaries

n        Clearly identify direct and indirect beneficiaries:

•           Directly receiving support

•           Indirectly benefiting

•           How many?

•           Where?

•           Characteristics?

7. Proposed Methodology

 Contents

 n        Partners

n        Project implementation

n        Activities

n        Risks and assumptions

n        Means

Why is it important?

n        Indicates how objectives will be achieved

Partners:

n        Clearly distinguish between main partners and other partners

n        Provide background information on your partner:

·          Goals/philosophy?

·          Area of intervention?

·          Relationship with the beneficiaries?

·          Cooperation track-record?

·          Role in the project

Project implementation:

n        Rationale for selecting a particular or unique methodology (has it been tested or will it be pioneered in this project

n        Project implementation structure: roles and responsibilities of all the project stakeholders special bodies (project steering committee etc.), orgainigram, chart.

Activities:

n        What will be done?

n        How?

n        By whom?

n        Where?

n        By when?

Risks/Assumptions:

n        Risks are external factors that could potentially jeopardise your project and are beyond the control of the project management

n        Assumptions are what you are supposing regarding those risks

Why is it important?

n        It helps assess the factors which could jeopardise your project

n        It helps examining the project for completeness and consistency: if a risk has been identify that is likely to happen and affect your project, then you should include activities that will reduce it or change your strategy all together (“killer assumption)…

 Budget

Contents : Budget itself &  Budget explanations and justifications

9. Monitoring and Evaluation

 Why is it important?

n        Monitoring: to assess whether your project activities are on track

n        Evaluation: to assess whether your project is effective, efficient, has an impact, is relevant, sustainable…