Call for Proposals

Achieving IHRC's Target Goals in Prioritized Sectors

The IHRC Call for Proposals is closed as of midnight September 6, 2011.

We would like to thank project proponents for having submitted their proposals. You will be informed of the final decision on October 10, 2011, by email.

Reference Documents

CIRH / Haiti Overview

Thematic Focus for the Call for Proposals

Proposed concept notes should respond to one of the prioritized thematic sectors. The IHRC wishes to receive proposals for the 6 priority sectors for recovery.

Submitted concept notes should outline the rationale as to how and why the proposed project is contributing to achieving the specific sector's target(s). Each thematic sector has a term of reference for which the concept note should be developed.

Submission Process

The IHRC-CFP will only accept applications through the IHRC website from organizations registered in Haiti. See Application Form and Submission Process information below.

CFP Background and Rationale

Pursuant to its mandate and responsibilities, IHRC produced a Strategic Plan to help guide project proponents, implementers, donors and investors in the recovery intervention plan.

Drawn from the GoH Action Plan (PADRN) and developed jointly by ministry leaders and international experts, the Strategic Plan outlined prioritized goals and target outcomes in seven sectors directly affected by the earthquake. The seven sectors are:

  • Neighborhood Return and Reconstruction
  • Debris Removal
  • Education
  • Energy
  • Health
  • Job Creation
  • Water and Sanitation

An eighth cross-sector focus area — capacity building of Haitian institutions — serves to reinforce IHRC's mission in all priorities and activities as it lays the ground work for longer term development.

Approved by IHRC's Board, the published Strategic Plan added much needed new resources and funding from bilateral and multilateral donors to the recovery and development of Haiti, particularly into the multi-donor trust fund — referred to as the Haiti Recovery Fund, administered by the World Bank.

The IHRC reviews and approves projects in collaboration with the Ministry of Planning, External Cooperation, and Line Ministries. The IHRC has received over 500 project proposals since its inception, a very large proportion of them do not align well with the priorities set in the Strategic Plan for recovery. To date, 89 projects have been approved by the IHRC and 55 of these are fully funded. While several of the targeted outcomes have been reached, there are many remaining gaps to be filled.

The IHRC is launching a call for proposal (CFP) to identify and attract readily implementable programs and projects that lend to the achievement of the remaining targets of the Strategic Plan.

In parallel, the IHRC is maintaining fundraising efforts with donors whose pledges were made at the NY Donors meeting. Preferred projects will be proposed to donors based on their demonstrated significance in achieving the targeted goals outlined in the Strategic Plan.

Simultaneously, the IHRC continues to work with the Government to develop implementable solutions to policy questions and institutional needs.

Learn more about IHRC priority objectives in the CIRH Strategic Plan and the GoH Action Plan.

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Eligibility

Selection of partners and proposals will be based on the following principles1:

  1. Alignment with IHRC's mandate and Haiti Recovery Strategy Plan

    Download Haiti Recovery Strategy Plan [PDF]

  2. Sound Governance

    Organizations must be financially sound and have strong governance structures, including clear strategic development vision, fiscal oversight and management capacity, as well as transparent decision-making2.

  3. Partnership Building

    Through the Call for Proposals, the IHRC aims at strengthening strategic partnerships and alliances with government, civil society organizations and donor agencies as part of integrated programming. The proponent should take the lead in partnership building by promoting national ownership and convergence around national planning processes. Therefore the organization must partner with all relevant Government agencies, and should also partner with relevant and development/recovery actors on the ground.

  4. Local Participation

    Preference will be given to projects promoting local participation through sub-contracting of Haitian civil society groups and national private sector.

  5. Concept Note Characteristics

    Preference will be given to proposals that are innovative and provide catalytic support to scale-up interventions.

    1. Innovative: The project proposal must show creative approaches that lend to efficiency, high-impact and sustainability3. The concept note should fully describe the sector targets component(s) that it will address, and how impact will be achieved through the build back better approach.
    2. Catalytic: The project proposal must demonstrate high likelihood of being of interest to the government. The proposal must show a good multiplier effect, as well as replicability and scalability if the project is successful.
  6. Development Effectiveness

    Organizations must adhere to the development effectiveness principles recognized in the Paris Declaration and the Accra Agenda for Action (This document can be found at www.oecd.org).

    Elements of development effectiveness include:
    1. Coordination of civil society efforts with government plans and programs.
    2. Greater coordination and collaboration among partners and other actors in the field to improve synergies.
    3. Focus on results, ensuring partners' initiatives are locally owned and respond to their partners' priorities with shared accountability for the achievement of related results.
    4. Exit strategy that ensures results achieved are sustainable.
    5. Organizations must provide training, as appropriate, to make sure local organizations have the capacity to lead on the development and delivery of the projects.
1 This list is not exhaustive. It is meant to guide you in defining your proposal to the IHRC
2 Due diligence will be done by the IHRC Performance and Anticorruption Office (PAO)
3 As outlined in detailed call for proposal per sector

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Application Guidelines

The IHRC will select the most commendable organizations that submit proposals that best align to deliver tangible results on the ground and contribute to the reconstruction effort.

Please review the Application Guidelines below.

Time Schedule

The deadline for submission of proposals is September 6, 2011 to allow sufficient time for consultation and input with government counterparts and other stakeholders.

September 6August 29 Deadline for the submission of Project Concept Notes and distribution of Project Concept Notes to Project Review Committee.
October 10 Deadline for final approval by the IHRC.

General Criteria

  1. Organizations that meet all eligibility requirements detailed in the section Eligibility can apply to the IHRC Call for Proposals.
  2. Organizations should have a track record of achieving sustainable results effectively and efficiently. They must also have relevant geographic and thematic expertise. A minimum of three years experience managing and delivering international development projects in Haiti is preferable.
  3. The Project Concept Notes submitted and all documents relating to the Proposal must be written in French. Correspondence and enquiries can nevertheless be submitted in English.
  4. The Proponent is expected to examine all corresponding instructions, forms, and guidelines contained in this Call for Proposal. Failure to comply with these requirements will be at the organization's risk and may affect the evaluation of the Proposal. The Project Concept Notes failing to provide all the required documentation will not be considered.
  5. The IHRC reserves the right to accept or reject any Proposal, and to annul the announced process at any time prior to approval, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected organization or any obligation to inform the affected organization for the IHRC's action.
  6. Submitted proposals should ensure that their budgets and funding requests are reasonable and realistic. We encourage proponents to come up with co-financing.
  7. IHRC and HRF rules and regulations will apply to projects requesting funding.
  8. In accordance with the IHRC and the HRF rules and regulations, funding is not guaranteed for an approved project. However, within this Call for Proposal framework, the IHRC will actively seek the mobilization of available funds through the donor community for prioritized proposals.

Technical Criteria

  1. Consultations are required with line Ministries during the proposal drafting period. Along with application documents, a letter from the Ministries should be submitted to demonstrate Government endorsement.
  2. Projects under the Call for Proposal should deliver tangible and measurable results within a year (before August 31st 2012)1.
  3. Preference will be given to Concept Notes demonstrating consideration for disaster risk management and environmental sustainability.
  4. The proposal must indicate how it will appropriately integrate equality between women and men.
  5. Priority will be given to Project Concept Notes that will include a clearly articulated exit and sustainability strategy.
  6. Organizations that can demonstrate immediate on-the-ground deployment capacity will be considered in priority. Projects must show their ability to initiate the planned activities as soon as the funding is disbursed.
1 Cf. recommended timeline per sector.

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Review and Approval Process

Concept note review and approval process

The standardized IHRC review and approval process will be applied, however on a fast track basis.

Roles and responsibilities

Management of the Call for Proposal

The management of the Call for Proposal is under the responsibility of the IHRC Executive Director. The Executive Director has delegated the responsibility:

  • To the Projects Department for management and oversight of the process
  • To the Strategic Planning Department for policy design and alignment with strategy
Role of line ministries
  • Contribute to the elaboration of final project document with IHRC secretariat;
  • Assess the Project Concept Notes and project document from a substantive perspective;
  • Assist in Project review committee;
Role of IHRC Projects Department
  • Ensure that process runs smoothly and with accountability and transparency norms;
  • Ensure the project review process promotes Government consultation;
  • Document the process;
  • Answer proponents' queries on project submission process, timeframe, concept note format etc.
Role of IHRC Strategic Planning Department
  • Reviews and assesses projects in alignment with Strategic plan;
  • Ensure links with IHRC approved projects and existing projects;
  • Establish or strengthen the links between similar or complimentary initiatives;
  • Assist in identifying strategic and high impact Project Concept Notes benefiting the country;
  • Encourage submission of Project Concept Notes through active consultation with stakeholders and key partners/donors;
  • Support proponents on the elaboration of final project document after approval
Role of Peer Review Panel

The Peer Review Panel is chaired by the Ministry of Planning & External Cooperation, and the IHRC Secretariat:

  • Reviews Project Concept Notes and suggest improvements;
  • Assesses alignment with the strategic plan and feasibility of Project Concept Notes from a strategic and operational perspective;
  • Assesses alignment with sector strategies
Role of PAO
  • Due diligence exercise
  • Risk analysis
  • PAO report to Peer Review Panel

Approved Projects Guidelines

  1. Development of a project document upon selection of the project concept note. Proponents will be required to involve the IHRC relevant experts and advisors in the proposal's development after it is approved.
  2. The draft project document should be submitted to the IHRC within 3 weeks after approval.

Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms

Established IHRC procedures for review, monitoring and evaluation will be applicable to IHRC activities. While the approval of Project Concept Notes will be expeditious, accountability for funds received will be ensured through rigorous reporting requirements and standard IHRC auditing procedures under the authority of the Performance and Anti-corruption Office (PAO).

For Additional Information

For the submission of proposals, questions and clarifications you can contact the Projects department at projects@cirh.ht

Clarification on CFP

A Proponent requiring any clarification for the Call for Proposal Concept Note may notify the Projects Department in writing at projects@cirh.ht. IHRC will respond in writing to any request for clarification that it receives no later than one week prior to the deadline for the submission of Project Concept Notes.

Amendments

Any amendments made to this Call for Proposal will be made by publication on IHRC's website http://www.cirh.ht. In order to allow proponents reasonable time in which to take the amendments into account, the IHRC may, at its discretion, extend the deadline for submission of Project Concept Notes.

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Application Forms and Required Documentation

The application must include the following documentations that will be attached to the "note and attachments" (Section 11 of the online project concept note).

  1. Project Concept Note — to be submitted through the IHRC project submission website only. E-mail submissions will NOT be accepted.
  2. Organization Profile
  3. A copy of the organization's legal registration
  4. A support letter from the relevant line Ministry and decentralized government authority if applicable
  5. Annual Report of last three years
  6. Any other information deemed relevant to the proposal

Organization Profile

  1. Background
    • Briefly describe the historical background of your organization, number of staff, core areas of expertise and experience, and number of years you have implemented the activities detailed in your proposal.
  2. Goal and Objectives
    • Please describe your organization's vision, mission / objectives, and goals.
  3. Structure
    • Please describe the management structure of your organization.
    • Please provide the CVs of the personnel who will conduct the proposed actions and / or manage the project.
  4. Activities, Network and Affiliation(s)
    • Briefly describe past successes in this area (names of projects with brief descriptions, agencies/organizations) as relevant to activities proposed in the project description, at a local, national and international level;
    • Please provide three references of agencies/organizations that your organization has worked with to implement projects;
    • Please mention affiliations with other organizations at a national AND international level (if any).
  5. Partnership and Financial Support
    • Please specify your main financial supporters and the kind of support they offer your operation.

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