Call for Proposals: Building Peace and Stability in Iraq Programme

The Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is inviting proposals from international NGOs (INGOs) to set up and manage a consortium of up to 5 national Iraqi NGOs. The consortium will aim to sustainably return and reintegrate internally displaced people (IDPs) in Iraq, as part of FCDO’s Building Peace and Stability in Iraq (BPSI) programme.

The purpose is to enhance the sustainable return and reintegration of internally displaced people (IDPs) in Iraq, as part of FCDO’s Building Peace and Stability in Iraq (BPSI) programme. This invitation is limited to not-for-profit and civil society organisations who are qualified to deliver projects through an Accountable Grant agreement.

The UK’s Building Peace and Security in Iraq (BPSI) programme reflects the need for a more holistic approach to reintegration. It is the UK’s response to the protracted displacement crisis and includes both returnees and local communities, who face many of the same problems.

Objectives

• The objectives of the NGO consortium are to ensure:

  • Displaced Iraqis can safely return and reintegrate into their areas of resettlement.

  • Discrimination against those with perceived Daesh affiliation is reversed.

  • Basic needs of returnees and local populations are met.

Scope

• The scope of the NGO consortium would include:

  • Addressing the underlying socio-political grievances at the root of the protracted displacement crisis.

  • Enhancing access to justice in local communities for returnees and local communities.

  • Ensuring local communities get access to basic services and livelihoods.

  • Addressing the risk of IDPs being vulnerable to extremist narratives.

  • Working with the NGO Coordination Committee for Iraq (NCCI), to ensure that the UN-led Durable Solutions programme is informed by the findings and results achieved by the NGO consortium.

  • Generating evidence on peacebuilding that can be used to influence the decisions of the government of Iraq and the international community

• Programme outputs to be delivered as part of the durable solutions will include activities such as:

  • Provision of assistance to facilitate the issuance of civil documentation to affected IDPs including women, girls, and the disabled.

  • Provision of legal support to affected IDPs.

  • Design and implementation of peacebuilding/social cohesion programmes to support community-level political settlement that will ensure returnees are sustainably reintegrated into their communities.

  • Facilitation of other activities that can enhance the return and reintegration of affected IDPs in a sustainable way.

Funding Information

• The programme is expected to commence tentatively in Q1 2023 and will initially last for 2 years.

• The total budget available over this period will be £2,500,000.

Geographical Areas

• The NGO consortium will work in conjunction with the IOM, who will be the implementing partner leading on the hard element of the programme. Collectively, the NGO consortium and IOM will identify project areas, recommend policies, and shape the nature of programme activities bearing in mind that both the hard and soft elements of the programme will be implemented in the same geographical locations.

• They envisage projects will be implemented in selected communities in the Daesh-affected governorates of Anbar, Diyala, Kirkuk, Ninewa, and Salah al din. They expect the consortium to consult with GOI, and relevant sub-national authorities on the choice of project locations. The exact locations may be determined after the Consortium has been established.

Approach

• It is envisaged that the consortium will be led and managed by an international NGO and include up to five national NGOs. The consortium will focus on locally defined solutions, with local NGO members of the group driving programme design and implementation. As the consortium lead, the INGO will have oversight over the activities of the local NGOs.

• The consortium will work closely with the NGO Coordination Committee for Iraq (NCCI) to provide evidence that supports its work on advocating for coherent government leadership for Iraq’s durable solutions agenda.

• Consortium Lead

  • The INGO, as the consortium lead, will:

    • Undertake a scoping exercise to identify national NGOs with the appropriate expertise and experience.

    • Undertake due diligence and capacity checks of identified national NGOs.

    • Set up management systems for the consortium. This will include, but not be limited to, progress monitoring, financial accounting, prevention of fraud and safeguarding against sexual exploitation and abuse. All systems should be fully complaint with FCDO regulations.

    • Help build the national NGOs’ capacities, particularly with respect to accountability and compliance but also, where appropriate, in technical aspects of programme design, implementation, and monitoring.

    • Ensure that consortium members deliver in line with BPSI objectives and comply with FCDO’s accountability and compliance requirements.

    • Quality assure and manage the design and development of project activities.