Financial Support to the Third Party (FSTP) GUIDELINE

PREFACE

Intending to develop a sustainable social services system in Syunik, and provide enhanced community-based social services, the project supports the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (Ministry) in the process of implementing sectoral reforms. The project supports the transition from a system of temporary cash assistance, provided by municipalities to a more coordinated and more resilient, and integrated one, that will lead to sustainable financing of community-based social services and better serve the needs of the most vulnerable population in the region, contributing to the reduction of poverty, inequality, and vulnerability.

Aimed at increasing the role of local CSOs as the main actors and supporting them in providing time-sensitive community-based social services needed by the local communities and forcibly displaced individuals from the Nagorno-Karabakh (NK), the PIN announces Financial Support to the Third Party (FSTP) scheme to enable CSOs operating in Syunik region in the implementation of community-based social services to the vulnerable groups of the population.

Donor: European Union

Implemented by: People in Need

Implementing partners: Armenian Caritas, WINNET

Project Overall objective: Civil Society Organizations are resilient, trusted, and accountable actors that contribute to reducing poverty, inequality, and vulnerability in Armenia.

Targeted communities: Kapan, Kajaran, Meghri, Goris, Sisian, Tatev, and Tegh communities of the Syunik region 

Focused on developing new and updated sustainable community-based social services, reflecting the needs of the host communities and forcibly displaced individuals from NK, PIN, under the European Union donor-funded “Partnership for Syunik-Enhances Community Based Social Services” project proposes to implement FSTP scheme aiming to develop new or updated sustainable community-based social services, reflecting the priority needs of the host communities and forcibly displaced individuals from NK.

The proposed social services should be in line with the current needs, identified as a result of the ongoing research of the social services needs in consolidated communities of Syunik region and reflections from the key players in the provision of social services, especially associated with hosting forcibly displaced individuals from NK.

Based on the Situational Analysis, conducted in communities of the Syunik region, the priority social service needs are:

• Creation of a community-based center of social services to provide needs-based social services (especially organization of services for children with developmental features, and children with disabilities, reunification of children in crisis with their families). When planning each service, budgets need to be provided to assess how the situation, caused the difficult life situation could be overcome.
• Provision of local social services for the prevention of trafficking, labor exploitation, prevention of the risk of using narcotics, psychotropic or other narcotic substances, formation of joint groups with displaced children and children living in the community, implementation of small programs for the development of community life, organizing meetings on raising awareness of services to prevent child abuse in primary medical institutions.
• Introduction of long-hours specialist home care, social care, and day employment services for single elderly people or people with mental health problems to prevent them from entering institutions.
• Launching of the "Social Taxi" service, the purpose of which is the transportation of various socially vulnerable groups to the places of provision of their necessary services, including from rural areas to urban communities, regional centers, or the capital. The "Social Taxi" service also includes an adapted vehicle to ensure decent transportation for people with disabilities and trained drivers.
• Assessment of work preferences and professional abilities of family members of displaced persons and children with disabilities, as well as development of employment programs by the community and local/international organizations.
• Retraining of specialists who provide services for children with age and psychological characteristics of development and disabilities, and in the case of such community-based social services providing structures availability, revision of existing personnel, and methodological tools. (The content of the training programs is subject to the agreement of the MLSA).
• Promotion of the presence of art therapists, and psychologists, including special psychologists and clinical psychologists in the community, considering that their transfer is possible to carry out through mobile groups. Involve them in continuous training processes related to the specifics of working with the elderly, children with disabilities, and their family members, people, subjected to violence, people who returned from closed institutions, and people who participated in military operations.
• Organization of urgent temporary housing (for a maximum of 2 weeks) in the form of rent compensation for people in difficult life situations. This housing provision service (crisis housing) involves the urgent rental of an apartment by a social service provider or the community for a third party daily, the provision of property cards, after which the process of assessing the family's social needs and providing further services will be organized.
• Establishing a model of small community houses to promote deinstitutionalization.
• Provision of advisory services for full or partial recovery of lost or reduced professional abilities of representatives of vulnerable groups, creation of accessible conditions for using professional skills to carry out work activities in a previous or new profession, including testing the procedure for providing reasonable adjustments according to the assessed need.
• Implementation of the service of providing socio-psychological support at home to a person in the last stage of the disease (with a prognosis of unfavorable outcome) during the last months and days of life, and, if necessary, also to the family members.

It will be important to consider the proposed social services sustainability from both financial and institutional perspectives.

Financial sustainability is the capacity to generate and manage income and expenses over time, diversify sources of funding (through social entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, state grants, commitments with other donors, sponsors, local government authorities, etc.), maintain strong stakeholder relationships with donors, supporters, volunteers, and beneficiaries, and ensure transparency and accountability in financial management.

Institutional sustainability is the capacity to develop and maintain the organizational capacity and culture over time, build and retain team skills, motivation, and commitment, as well as ensure the continuous flow and quality standards of social services provision.

The FSTP scheme will total up to 225,000 EUR, with an estimated 5 grants (up to 45,000 Euro each, AMD equivalent) awarded based on an open competition among CSOs operating in the Syunik region and providing social services to vulnerable population groups. The preference, however, would be given to those CSOs, that are already actively involved in the organizational and technical capacities development, taking place within the scope of the project.

Applicants can come up with several proposals/ideas, but it may be that only one receives an award.   

• Launching a Call for Proposal: November 21, 2023
• Information Session: November 27, 2023
• Deadline for submission applications: December 10, 2023
• Review of applications by the Evaluation Committee: December 18, 2023
• Pitching session of pre-selected candidates: December 21, 2023
• Due diligence visits: December 22-24, 2023
• The selection committee makes final decisions on granting: Dec 28, 2023
• Communication of award decision: January 4, 2024
• Contracting: January 9-12, 2024
• Project implementation period: from January 15, 2024 till December 15, 2024

• CSOs operating in the Syunik Region of Armenia, who have at least 1 year of experience in providing social services.