How to get your project funded: An effective grant proposal
By: Maikudi Danburam
Tags: Grant, Proposal, Grant Funding, Grant Writing, Funding

How to get your project funded: An effective grant proposal

It is an undoubted fact that virtually all people have something in mind that has to do with service to their respective community or the world at large; we grew up in communities where there is at least a single thing that always touches our hearts that we may wish to change or standardize and in most instances we develop pivotal projects as a self contributory to help address those ravaging issues, however, the funding has always been a great dilemma that stands between us and our well-thougth projects and had placed a mountain that barricade our way towards the achievement of our community developments. It become an impasse that such a great project as yours should die out without being implemented. Therefore, this article aims to walk you through the horizon, to shine your way to acquire adequate funding for the implementation of your well- thought projects for a greater community development.

First of all before you can start thinking about funding, make sure you are determined to come up with a very crucial project, give a thorough thought on your project and be rest assured that your project worth it. Keep all in mind and seek a friendly advice and comments on your project; a positive comment means a go ahead in your direction. Then comes the crafting of an effective grant proposal to fund that invaluable thought of yours. Now, how do you write an effective proposal?

Understanding what it takes to lurks out a funding (grant) proposal is second to none in getting your project funded. Grants are money given by government or NGOs to fund a particular projects, it is usually specific (in time and type). It can be competitive, formula, continuation, or pass-through funding. The competitive funding is such that is open to everyone, here your ability to forge out an effective proposal increases your chance of winning the grant. The other three are restricted to some certain people, organization, or demography; however, understanding their nature highlights your chance of winning.

Writing an effective competitive grant proposal requires that you submit a well prepared document that contains the following parts as headings: cover letter, concept note/summary, needs statement, goals and objectives, methods, evaluation, sustainability, budget and additional documents. However, a catchy concept note with justification of budget and the rest holds the fate of getting your project funded; it should be well organized then.

In contrast to competitive grant funding, the formula funding, is given to predetermined recipients. The award is allocated to eligible entities based on population or other criteria and applicants that meet the requirements are entitled to receive the money. But here you might not be required to submit a documents as in that of competitive; sometimes organizational existence is enough. Grants can be used to provide, equipment, personnel, training, technical assistant etc.

The continuation funding is usually for those that are already grantees, it offers them an option to renew their funding for the following year. In this type, being a current grantee at the time of application offers you an extra points in the selection process. Application documents may require only reports or updated documents for the existing project.

The pass-through funding are usually given by federal government or NGOs to state government for further distribution to local areas. The state government determine what method of distribution it wishes to apply, through competitive or formula, or will distribute it to already existing projects; based on what is its choice. Whatever method it may choose, the criteria remained the same.

In conclusion, Understanding the four main types of grant funding will guide where you should concentrate your energy during the application process and holds the rubrics of drafting an effective proposal. If you are applying for a competitive program, it is best to target your efforts toward preparing a compelling narrative that gives your reader the view of what you are up for. Non-competitive formula and continuation programs usually only require you to submit reports or updated documents; for these programs, be certain to return all the requested materials on time. When applying for pass-through funding, which may be either competitive or non-competitive, read the funding announcement carefully to determine what type of grant you are applying for, so that you can proceed accordingly and come up with a sound proposal.

References:

eCivis (2020) "Law Enforcement Grants: The Four Main Types of Grant Funding" eCivis Bloggers. Available at https://blog.ecivis.com/bid/48460/law-enforcement-grants-the-four-main-types-of-grant-funding; accessed on 2nd December, 2020.

Gorsevski, Ellen (2016) "Writing successful grant proposals" Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. pp. 17–19. ISBN 978-94-6300-390-2 .