THE FUND FOR LOCAL COOPERATION PROGRAMME IN NAMIBIA 2016-2018

The Fund for Local Cooperation (FLC) is a development cooperation instrument administered by the
Embassy of Finland in Windhoek. The FLC supplements other Finnish cooperation in Namibia by
supporting Namibian actors to carry out projects that they find relevant in addressing development
concerns in their communities and Namibian society at large. The purpose of FLC instrument is twofold:

1) To improve the functioning of local civil society for implementing target-oriented projects
promoting democratic and accountable societies

2) To support cooperation between private-sector actors in the host country and Finland that is
expected to have positive development impact

FLC serves Finlands foreign and security policy objectives which include eradication of poverty by means
of economically, socially and ecologically sustainable development. FLC administration is embedded on
Human Rights Based (HRB) approach which demands adherence to the international legal frameworks
and principles concerning human rights throughout the planning, implementation and evaluation of
projects. By applying the principles of Results-Based Management (RBM), conscious efforts are taken to
enforce the achievement of tangible development results and impacts. Cross-cutting objectives as set
out in Finlands Development Policy Document, including promotion of gender equality, reduction of
inequality and promotion of climate sustainability, have been reflected in Namibian context in order to
integrate them meaningfully to the FLC Programme objectives and administration.

FLC plays a central role in the Finnish development cooperation in Namibia. It enables local non-
governmental organizations and companies who might have a solid project plan but lack financial
support, to implement and take action in addressing barriers to development that are considered
contextually relevant and timely. The focal areas of FLC Programme 2016-2018 have been derived from
continuous dialogue with national and international development partners, literature and other relevant
documentation in order to best contribute to Namibia's development.

Focal Areas of the Fund for Local Cooperation Programme 2016-2018

The overall goal of FLC Programme 2016-2018 is to improve the functioning of civil society and capacity
of private sector for implementing projects for socio-economically and environmentally sustainable
development. This goal will be pursued through two focus areas:

1. Democratic participation for enhanced equality

The voice of the most vulnerable groups tends to be underrepresented in decision making processes.
Ultimately, this may influence the effectiveness and relevance of national policies. This component is
meant for projects that have potential to enhance socio-economic equality by promoting and enhancing
principles of democratic participation, especially that of women and girls. Initiatives may enhance the
capacity of civil society actors to meaningfully contribute to decision-making concerning the
advancement of women's rights and well-being, especially in communities that experience poverty and
economic hardships. Initiatives may also target decision-makers, enhancing their awareness and
capacity to strengthen the representation and visibility of the view-points of the most vulnerable
communities, especially women, in planning and implementation of development policies, initiatives
and processes.

Projects may include but are not limited to the following:

- Promoting participation of the most vulnerable groups, especially women, to policy processes
concerning their well-being

- Promoting access to information

- Promoting contextually relevant decision making/ policy development through the promotion of
democratic principles

- Increasing women's participation

Model indicators:

- Increased public participation, especially that of the women, in democratic processes and
decision making

- Organizations supported by the FLC are responsible, accountable and make meaningful
contribution towards the realization of the national development plans

2. Dynamic, responsible and inclusive economic growth

The second component is about tackling socio-economic disparities through promotion of dynamic,
responsible and inclusive economic growth, business and investment environment for example by
developing new innovations; such as products, processes and services. Development of economic
opportunities is encouraged to be combined with strong social and environmentally sustainable
perspectives.

Possible projects may include but are not limited to the following:

- Improved entrepreneurial skills of women entrepreneurs through coaching/ training, mentoring

or similar approaches
- Increased growth and competitiveness of previously disadvantaged enterprises through
increasing access to business and trade opportunities inside/ outside Namibia
- Promoting innovative products or business approaches by women enterprises
- Models for promoting entrepreneurship in vulnerable contexts
- Development of innovative solutions for tackling socio-economic or environmental problems,
e.g. business models for building a greener economy.

Links and partnership with Finnish partners are encouraged.

Model indicator:
 - Improvement of business and economic opportunities and job creation for the vulnerable
groups, especially women
- Enhanced participation of Namibian private sector actors in local, regional and international
business and trade opportunities that embrace sustainable economic growth
- Improved availability of affordable, accessible and quality renewable energy and natural
resource management solutions

Oversight of the FLC

The Ambassador is responsible for the oversight of the FLC instrument. FLC Committee supports and
guides the management of the FLC instrument and assesses and monitors individual projects. Also
relevant departments of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland support the implementation of the
FLC instrument.

Partner Selection Procedures

Once or twice a year the Embassy of Finland launches a call for proposals which is advertised on the
Embassy website: www.finland.org.na. The application process has two stages: first the applications are
reviewed for compulsory requirements after which those that successfully pass the compulsory
requirements will undergo a technical assessment against set criteria.

The criteria will focus on relevance, sustainability, local needs and priorities, and coherence with the
Finnish development policy and its priorities and principles. Furthermore, the organizational capacity
and project plans will be assessed in terms of their adherence to solid administration principles,
effectiveness and efficiency for achieving the overall objectives, and delivering tangible results in line
with the Call for Proposal.

A maximum of 10 project partners will be annually selected and supported.

Development Policy Principles

A basic assessment criterion in the assessment of the FLC applications considers how well the
development policy principles are considered in the proposals. Three key concepts include Human
Rights Based Approach (HRB), Result-Based Management (RBM), and Cross-Cutting Objectives (CCO).
These key principles of HRB, RBM and CCO are evaluated through competitive scoring in all the FLC
applications. The summary of these concepts is provided below.

Human Rights Based Approach to Development

Finlands development policy departs from the idea that every person in the world has the right to
a decent life: a viable environment, education, security, health, livelihood and the possibility to exert
influence. Respect for human rights and their promotion is a principle guiding the assessment of FLC
applications. The aim of this principle is that even the poorest people know their rights and are able to
act for them. It is equally important that the authorities know their human rights obligations and are
capable of implementing them. Applying the HRBA means that expected results of the FLC Programme
can be expressed in terms of improvements in the Human Rights situation of the country or as
reductions in identified capacity gaps of rights-holders and duty-bearers.

Result-Based Management

Results- Based Management (RBM) is a strategic control mechanism in development cooperation such
as that of FLC. RBM uses feedback loops to achieve strategic goals. This outcome may be a physical
output, a change, an impact or a contribution to a higher level goal. Information (evidence) of the actual
results is used for accountability, reporting and to feedback into the design, resourcing and delivery of
projects and operational activities. Results are defined as changes in a state or a condition that derive
from a cause-and-effect relationship. The key tool in RBM is the results chain and framework. Regarding
the FLCs, inputs are the financial, human and material resources used for implementing the FLC
interventions. Activities are actions taken or work performed through which the inputs, such as funds,
technical assistance and other types of resources, are mobilized to produce specific outputs of the FLC
interventions. In line with RBM principles, the Mission looks for and selects projects that demonstrate a
solid plan to achieve desired results and the FLC Programme's outcome in the sector / theme in
question.

Cross-Cutting Objectives

Finlands development policy has three cross-cutting objectives, which are required to be integrated in
all development cooperation. These include gender equality, reduction of inequality, and climate
sustainability. The cross-cutting objectives can be promoted in three ways: 1) by including the objectives
in all activities, 2) by implementing projects targeted at these objectives and 3) through policy dialogue
with decision-makers.

Eligibility

The eligible partners must be solely registered as Namibian actors which are established in the host
country on an official and permanent basis, target and support benefits of the host country.

The FLC Internal Instructions allow FLC funding to be used for both

1) Namibian registered civil society and private sector organizations; Non-governmental

organisations; Science and technology communities, Universities and other educational and
research institutions; Public bodies and cultural institutions such as museums, libraries and
 theatres; Independent media; Foundations or religious communities; Chambers of Commerce;
Interest groups of companies and employees; Business associations; Organisations engaged in
the promotion of export and investment; Trade promotion agencies; Training institutions;
Producer cooperatives

2) Namibian registered for-profit private companies and business partnerships; Local private
companies, businesses, including cooperatives and social enterprises

The Fund for Local Cooperation cannot support:

- An unregistered organization

- The Government, ministries, local authorities, public schools

- Activities of political parties, unless the activity supported is a joint activity of a representative
number of political parties

- Projects in which the beneficiary is a single person, single family or individuals' private business

- Pure charity purposes, donations, once off events

- Scholarships and school fees of individuals

- Humanitarian aid

- Basic research; Support for basic research cannot be counted as development aid (= ODA
eligibility); to be eligible, a research project must clearly promote economic development and
welfare or the building of the actors' capacity in the host country

- Purchase of land

- Start-up capital

- Finnish beneficiaries and any Finnish registered entity

What kind of interventions FLCsupports?

As a rule, FLCs are designed to support projects with clearly set aims and not to cover organisations
operating expenses (so-called core funding that is used, for example, to office premises, salaries, travel).
Preferred duration of a project is 12 to 24 months. The approach is to establish long term partnerships
with a limited number of organizations.

The Call for Proposals indicates the kind of activities to which funding is available. The initiatives of not-
for-profit projects of private sector/civil society organizations may be related to:

promotion and advocacy of human rights, good governance and democratic principles
 inclusive economic development;
green economy and agribusiness;
micro and small entrepreneurship;
economic empowerment of women, youth and vulnerable people;
advancement of alternative forms of business such as cooperatives and social enterprises;
business seminars;
development, piloting and demonstration projects of innovations that help improve the welfare
of the people in developing countries;
use of ICT, environmental and other technologies to create new innovative business;
vocational training;
occupational safety and health;
accessibility of persons with disabilities;
platforms and networks of private sector and other actors for cooperation;
renewable energy; and
promotion of Human Rights and corporate social responsibility in business.
Corporate social responsibility project not directly linked to the core business of the company,
such as vocational training for a broader community.

The initiatives of private companies and business partnerships are subject to a number of special
provisions. Support to local private companies will always require application with the Private Company
Application Form where these special provisions apply. These provisions require that support is given
only to activities which lead to verifiable development and Human Rights impacts and fulfil the ODA
criteria. All private sector applicants that receive FLC funding must align themselves with the UN Global
Compact principles in their operations as well as plan, implement and monitor their FLC projects and
business partnerships based on Human Rights Based Approach. Other requirements include that the
projects should not excessively influence the local competition circumstances, or be procurement from
the company supported or support equity or liability of a company.

The private company initiatives may be related to:

Seed money in the early phases of a business-oriented project. Seed money means a grant for a
business partnership or project-type activity with a share of funding coming from the company
itself.
Developing Business Partnership which refers to long-term for-profit cooperation between
companies or other commercial entities in developing countries and Finland.
Identification of (a) business partner(s) in Finland;
Feasibility study, business plan, market research or equivalent of a business partnership or for-profit
project (for restrictions, see the instructions below);
Participation in a trade fair, mission or other business-related event in the partner country, Finland
or third country necessary for identification of a partner(s) or establishment of a business
partnership;
Participation in a global or regional development-related conference;
Environmental, social and/ or Human Rights impact assessment;
 Planning, training and technical assistance related to development, piloting and demonstration
activities of innovations that help improve the welfare of the people in developing countries;
Training of the company employees, subcontractors, service providers and other partners and
support to local training activities;
Establishment of platforms and networks of private sector and other actors for cooperation (e.g.
business associations, sectoral/ thematic clusters of companies, UN Global Compact Local Network);
Corporate social responsibility activity or not-for-profit project;
Use of external experts and consultants in the above described and other capacity development
activities.

The eligible expenses for private companies and business partnership projects include:

Costs incurred in the project country. This includes travel and accommodation expenses, but
daily allowances are excluded.
If the project involves training and fact-finding activities of the employees or participation in a
business event outside the project country (e.g. in Finland), their travel and accommodation
costs can be approved, but daily allowances are excluded;
Fees of an external expert/ consultant for acceptable reimbursement ceiling is pre-determined
by the Mission based on best available local knowledge of expense levels at time of signing the
agreement. Daily fees of the experts and the amount of days are agreed in the Project Plan.
Training costs which relate to transfer of know-how or technology can be approved, with the
general limits regarding personnel, experts and travel as set out above,

FLCfunding cannot be used for the following activities and/ or expenses:

Feasibility studies for concessional credit (or equivalent) schemes and export promotion
schemes originating from Finland;
General marketing activities and marketing materials expenses;
General product development or innovation costs which play no part in a supported business
partnership or project;
General market research costs which play no part in a supported business partnership or
project;
General seminar or travel costs which play no part in a business partnership or project (e.g.
general partner mapping in Finland);
Purchase costs of machinery and equipment if that is the only or almost only purpose of the
project.

The guiding principle for supporting private companies is that the applicant itself provides a reasonable
share of the financing of the project. Moreover, the financial risks of the project should be one central
criterion when the volume of the financial support is considered. The FLC grant can cover maximum 70
% of the entire project costs for private companies and business partnerships. The FLC grants given to
for-profit operations of private companies will be less than 200 000 Euros / 3 years / company (so-called
de Minimis support). Approved private company or business partnership projects will receive the due
amount of the FLC grant after the approved project expenses have incurred.

The amount will be paid against a payment request.

The FLC grant can be settled in one instalment only.
The applicant shall submit a Final Report in connection with the reimbursement request.

Selection of private company/ business partnership projects proposed for funding are assessed as
follows:

- the project is target-oriented, its progress can be monitored through reporting, and its results
are estimated to be permanent;

- the objectives are in line with the priorities set out in Finlands development policy, the
mission's action plan and the development policy priorities mentioned earlier in this guideline;

- the projects supplement other activities and bring added value in relation to them;

- the nature of the project or activity enables statistical reporting of the funding as official
development aid (ODA);

- the organisation implementing the project is reliable and capable of carrying it out (financial
management, bookkeeping, competent staff, the organisation's basic financing etc. are in
order);

Application

Mission organizes a training or information sharing event on the issues above for applicants in the
beginning of the application process. The information sharing event is publicly advertised in the website
of the Embassy. A public Call for Project Proposals is launched annually depending on the availability of
funds. This event aims at helping applicants to consider their interest and potential for responding to
the call for proposals and allows them to improve the quality of their applications before submitting
them to the Mission.

FLCapplication criteria and selection procedures

All applicants use the same application form in order to guarantee that all key facts are presented and to
allow for comparability. The applicant must provide the mission with an a cover letter signed and dated
by an authorized representative of the applicant together with 1) FLC application form, 2) detailed
project plan with compulsory attachments (indicated in the official form).

The selection of suitable projects is undertaken in two stages. First, the applications are assessed
whether they meet the compulsory requirements (pass/ fail) or not. If an application does not pass all
the compulsory requirements, it will fail and will not continue for the technical assessment of the
applications. The compulsory requirements include whether all the terms and conditions set in the Call
for Proposal are met, such as whether the organization submitted the proposal on time, whether the
proposal included all the necessary documents, whether the proposal was signed and dated.

The applications fulfilling the compulsory requirements will undergo a more detailed technical
assessment of competitive scoring. The assessment concentrates on the content of the proposed project
and the organizational capacity of the applicant. Particular attention will be given to

- The objectives of the project and how well they contribute towards the FLC Programme
outcome as well as the overall objectives of the Development Policy of Finland.

- The implementation plan of the project and how relevant, feasible and sustainable it is in the
selected context. Particularly the integration of the principles of Result Based-Management,
Human Rights-Based Approach to development and Cross-Cutting Objectives are evaluated.

Other considerations include:

The organization shall have the capacity to contribute to the objectives of the Finland's
development policy (for further information, please visit www.formin.fi)

The Organization(s) shall have a genuine, credible domestic basis

The Project should not be launched or fully financed by the donor community. The organization
shall have the capacity to initiate project planning and invest its own resources in project
implementation

Activities should reach a large audience and have potential for a broad impact

The applicant organization must be reliable and adhere to local rules and regulations of good
organizational and project management.

Networking, cooperating and coordinating with other organizations is encouraged

Minimum requirement for an FLC project is that it is at least Human Rights sensitive and that project
beneficiaries have participated in the preparation and design of the project. The minimum level Human
Rights sensitive requires that an assessment has been done to ensure that the funded intervention does
not contribute to discriminatory structures, norms and practices or have negative effects on the
enjoyment of Human Rights. Finland does not finance interventions which are Human Rights blind. In
addition, the Mission assesses the applicant organization's financial and administrative capacity. On the
basis of the competitive scoring used in the technical assessment, the FLC Committee recommends the
selection of the best 1-5 project applications from each sector / theme of the FLC Programme for
continuing the selection process which includes organizational and financial capacity assessment. It is
also possible that on the basis of the capacity assessment and visit to the organization, the Mission has
to reject the organization's application and make negative funding decisions on it.

All applicants will be informed on the Funding Decisions within 3 months from the closing date of the
call for proposals either negative or positive. All applications for financial support, including the FLC
applications, will be reviewed at least twice a year. The feedback contains the justifications for the
decision. Only proposals corresponding to the Call for Proposals will be considered for FLC funding. The
Call for Proposals is published on the Embassy website. Project proposals received after the deadline will
not be considered.

General terms concerning the FLCgrants

The FLCs are governed by Finnish legislation, particularly the Act on Discretionary Government Transfers
(688/2001), and the FLC Internal Instructions (6/ 2014) of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA) of
Finland. The Internal Instructions set out the main principles concerning eligibility criteria for partners
and use of the FLC funds.

The local partners implementing FLC projects must abide by the relevant local legislation. As a rule all
projects must be implemented by the local partners themselves, and only small procurements of
external agents may be allowed and only small procurements of a maximum of 15.000 from external
agents may be allowed. If any procurement of goods or services for the value of over 15.000 is needed,
the procurement shall be carried out in compliance with the Finnish legislation on competitive bidding.

Approved grant can only cover administrative costs of a project up to 10% of the total project budget.
No further funding can be granted to an organization before the previous FLC project is officially closed.
All project proposals should contain an item line for project-specific audit at the end of the project. In
addition, the Embassy has the right to evaluate and audit projects at any time. In such a case, the
organization responsible for the project shall make all required documentation available for the
evaluation or audit. The Government of Finland has a zero tolerance for misuse of development
cooperation funds. The Embassy reserved the right to accept or reject the project proposals. More
detailed terms and conditions for the administration of FLC grants and management of FLC projects are
included to the FCL agreements.