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Call for project bids 2022: open societies, climate change and accessible education in Panama

The British Embassy in Panama City is accepting proposals for projects by 15 May 2022 that support open societies, climate change and accessible education.

This was published under the 2019 to 2022 Johnson Conservative government

The deadline for proposals is 11:59pm (Panama time) on 15 May 2022.

The British Embassy in Panama City is now accepting proposals for projects between April 2022 and March 2023. We encourage civil society, non-profit and multilateral organisations to submit proposals that directly support the following thematic areas:

  1. Open societies

    a. Open data and access to information

    b. Democracy

    c. Human rights (LGBT+, afrodescendants, indigenous communities, resocialisation strategies)

    d. Media freedom

  2. Climate change

    a. Waste management and recycling

    b. Implementation of nationally-determined contributions (NDCs) and COP26 commitments, nature-based solutions

    c. Energy transition, clean growth, tackling deforestation

    d. Links between climate change and academia

    e. Adaptation in indigenous communities

  3. Accessible education

    a. Bilingualism

    b. Creative industries development, cultural, software, artificial intelligence (AI), IoT

    c. Technologies for virtual learning

    d. STEM education

Funding terms

  • projects cannot last longer than 9 months
  • the total cost of a project should be between $10,000 and $30,000 USD (or the equivalent in other currencies). Proposals must be submitted in the currency in which the organisation operates
  • administration costs for delivering a project must not exceed 10% of the total project budget
  • payments to implementing partners during the project will be made in arrears (i.e. for actual costs incurred by the implementing partner after project activities take place). The embassy cannot accept proposals that include advance payments
  • activities can only start once there is an agreement officially in place with the British embassy
  • the call for proposals is not intended for individuals, for-profit or government organisations
  • we cannot consider projects that include the purchase of equipment and IT devices
  • ensure projects have clear, tangible, and achievable deliverables within the funding period
  • the embassy will conduct a Due Diligence Assessment (DDA) to determine if a selected implementing partner has the capacity and capability to manage the funds and deliver project objectives. The embassy will save the right to decide whether it should maintain or reject a project depending on DDA outcomes
  • project proposals must be aligned with the FCDO´s priorities and thematic areas above
  • project proposals should identify the key beneficiaries and reflect the change they will bring
  • project proposals should state the issues they will address and why the UK should fund them
  • projects must qualify as Official Development Assistance (ODA). ODA is a term created by the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). ODA projects have, as a primary objective, the promotion of economic development and welfare in developing countries. Read more about how the UK government uses ODA

Milestones

The embassy will hold a Q&A session via Microsoft Teams on Thursday 21 April 2022 at 11am (Panama time) to provide information about the bidding process and funding objectives.

Access the session

Date Activity
21 April 2022 (11am Panama time) Q&A session
15 May 2022 (11:59pm Panama time) Call for bids closes
December 2022 85% progress on projects
February 2023 100% progress on projects

Submission:

To submit a proposal, email the following documents to Panama.Prosperity@fcdo.gov.uk with the subject line ‘Organisation name: Project title’:

  1. Project Proposal Form for projects up to USD 15,000 (ODT, 65 KB)
  2. Project Proposal Form for projects over USD 15,000 (ODT, 73.5 KB)
  3. Activity Based Budget Form (ODS, 9.66 KB)
  4. Climate change and inclusion statement (ODT, 5.73 KB)

Ensure the submitted documents have the organisation name at the beginning of the file name (e.g. Organisation Name - Project Proposal Form).

You must include a point of contact in the body of the email.

Both successful and rejected bids will receive notice in due course. Implementing partners will be expected to sign a standard grant agreement with the embassy. The terms are non-negotiable. All implementers must also commit to a consistent financial management, regular monitoring and reporting back when requested; including discussing and updating any changes to the activity based budget with the assigned projects officer.

About the International Programme Fund (IPF)

The International Programme Fund (IPF) of the United Kingdom was launched in 2015 as a responsive, agile fund to support the strategic objectives of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). The IPF supports adaptive, short-term projects which also influence local policies and create networks that open opportunities for further engagement and diplomacy.

Projects must qualify as Official Development Assistance (ODA). ODA is a term created by the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. ODA projects have, as a primary objective, the promotion of economic development and welfare, while ensuring gender equality, inclusion, and compliance with Paris Agreement objectives. Read more about how the UK Government uses ODA.

The Panama Prosperity mailbox will only receive proposal applications. You can email Anibal.Castillo@fcdo.gov.uk if you have general inquiries.

Updates to this page

Published 12 April 2022
Last updated 29 April 2022 + show all updates
  1. Change of date for submissions

  2. Date for proposals' deadline

  3. Added translation