Since 2018, Voice has been implementing a unique initiative called the Nothing About Us Without Us! (NOW-Us!) Awards started in collaboration with the Spindle of Partos. The award aims to recognise inspiring inclusive strategies from Africa and Asia, promote diversity and inclusion, and support the self-empowerment of rightsholders groups and communities. They are a celebration and revalidation of the fact that rightsholders know best what inclusion means for their communities and that they hold experiential knowledge which is the basis for human centred innovations. Being creative and adaptive The grant lifecycle, some practical lessons
importance of having necessary human resources for delivering on a programme such as Voice, that seeks to go the extra mile in meeting grantee partners where they are. While there are some differences in the portfolio sizes between the different countries and the multi-country grantee portfolio managed by the coordination team, we have learned that absorbing the administrative burden of grant making and ensuring responsiveness requires not only the right people but also the right number of people.
The awards started under the framework of the Innovate and Learn Grants, meant to test and scale new approaches with a focus on human- centred innovations that are very context specific. For the Extension phase however, it will be complemented with the Empowerment Grants to test out the winning innovative approaches to inclusion. A highlight for the final ten nominees is their participation in a bootcamp, where they learn about the other nominated initiatives and strengthen their proposals in the run-up to the Award selection.
Harnessing the power of partnership
The understanding of what the consortium relationship between Oxfam Novib and Hivos means in practical terms took some time to percolate to the country level. Voice has developed a distinctive identity, giving it a level of independence from Oxfam/Hivos. For instance, the Voice uniform letterhead for contracts and transfers reflect that Voice is managing funding on behalf of MFA. The semi-independence also created space for Voice to challenge certain procedures and ways of working at Oxfam/Hivos and to pilot different value-based practices and decolonising narratives leading to fresh relationships and ongoing learning and growth. While this has a positive side in terms of developing and managing relationship with grantee partners. It can also be a barrier where for instance, legal matters arise in relation to integrity cases. Voice not being a legal entity, these revert to the implementing partner of the consortium. In some cases, this leads to complex situations and tension.
The combined network and reputation of Oxfam and Hivos has clearly helped in reaching those not easily reached. First because both organisations have established contacts with a wide range of local civil society organisations through which many new grantee partners could be identified and attracted. Second, but not less important, being recognised civil society organisations, Oxfam and Hivos are seen as like-minded and therefore regarded with less suspicion when calling marginalised and discriminated groups to come forward with proposals for support. This is particularly important for rightsholder groups like: sex workers, street children, people with disability and LGTBQI, that prefer to keep a low profile. On the other side however, this like-mindedness also brings to the surface the challenge of finding the right balance between being development partner (i.e., working together in partnership) and fund manager (i.e., with clear accountability from one to the other).
“Grant management within Voice encompasses every part of a grant’s lifecycle, from pre-award analysis, grant implementation through to post-award grant closeout. The process is always evolving and includes various lifecycle tasks through its unique award phases.
The biggest learning has been navigating the bureaucracies of both consortium partners, as well as the Oxfam confederation. While the systems within the two institutions- Oxfam Novib and Hivos, provide a strong basis for the accountability and transparency necessary in fund and grant management, they also require immense human resources to adhere to. Additionally, as with other funders, navigating the fine balance between accountability and agility, the organisational systems put to test the capacity of Voice as a grant making facility
to be quick and responsive. Using long-standing experience in fund management, both organisations have developed fund man- agement structures and procedures tailored to their needs. Oxfam Novib being the lead organisation for Voice, it was decidedthat their systems are guiding, where possible and relevant. The challenge has been mainstreaming procedures in Hivos countries implementing Voice- Tanzania, Kenya, Indonesia, and The Philippines.
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