Fifth Round
PROJECT MONITORING, REPORTING, REVISION AND EXTENSION
GUIDELINES
For all reporting templates, please visit the UNDEF website:
http://www.un.org/democracyfund/Grantees/grantees_R5.html
This document outlines monitoring, reporting, extension and revision guidelines for UNDEFfunded 5th round projects. Reports submitted to UNDEF are considered to be part of the public
domain (unless otherwise agreed) and as such may be shared with UNDEF’s Programme
Consultative Group, Advisory Board, or may be posted on the UNDEF’s website. UNDEF will
also use the reports submitted during the lifespan of the project to determine whether projects are
making sufficient progress and to recommend adjustments to scope, implementation and funding
as needed. All reports must be drafted in English or French, the two working languages of the
UN Secretariat.
1. Project Management Arrangement
UNDEF-funded projects fall into two categories:
1) CSO-Implemented projects without Executing Agency (CSOP)
These are projects where the Civil Society Organization (CSO) is receiving the grant, is
responsible for the overall management of the project and does not have an Executing Agency. The
CSO under this arrangement bears all substantive, financial, monitoring and reporting
responsibilities to UNDEF.
2) CSO-Implemented projects with Executing Agency (CSOP + EA)
These are projects where the CSO partners with a UN Executing Agency. The CSO bears the
responsibility to implement the project with oversight of the EA. Under this arrangement, the CSO
or other applicant will bear substantive responsibility for achieving results in the project. The
Executing Agency as responsible for the oversight of the project will bear all financial, monitoring,
reporting and evaluation responsibilities to UNDEF.
Note: Please refer to the signed cover page of the project document if you are unsure about
which category pertains to your organization.
2. Project Monitoring
UNDEF projects are monitored in several ways:
A. All Implementing Agencies for all projects must monitor their own activities. The Implementing
Agency (IA) (and the Executing Agency as relevant) should use the indicators set in the Result Based
Framework of the Project Document (PD) to monitor the project throughout its duration. If the IA is
required to collect additional baseline date, they are required to do so as soon as possible.
Furthermore, the data for the indicators will be used in the final evaluation of the project.
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B. For CSOP projects, UNDEF will appoint monitors to observe project milestones as detailed in the
project document.
C. For CSOP + EA projects, the Executing Agency is responsible for project monitoring and for
reporting to UNDEF.
D. In addition to the above, for all projects, UNDEF will monitor progress by way of review of midterm and progress reports and will conduct ad-hoc monitoring visits of the project as needed.
3. Project Reporting
All projects (CSOP and CSOP + EA) are required to submit the following i) Mid-Term/Annual Report, ii)
Final Narrative Report and iii) Financial Utilization Reports.
For CSOP projects the Implementing Agency must submit the reports to UNDEF. For CSOP + EA
projects the Executing Agency must submit the reports to UNDEF in consultation with the Implementing
Agency. See Annex I for reporting timelines. Additionally, UNDEF may request ad hoc updates at any
time throughout the duration of the project.
4. Monitoring and Reporting Requirements for CSOP Projects
The following monitoring and reporting requirements apply to CSOP projects only. For information about
reporting requirements for CSOP + EA projects please refer to section 5 of this document. Templates for
financial and narrative reporting can be found on the UNDEF website. Reports that do not use the
correct template will not be accepted.
4.1 Milestone Reports and Financial Utilization Reports
A. UNDEF will appoint an observer to monitor project milestones 2 and 3. This person or
entity will bear no responsibility for any aspect of implementation of the project. In order to
arrange for monitoring of project milestones as detailed in the disbursement schedule in the project
document, the Implementing Agency must provide UNDEF with the logistical details of the
milestone activity two months prior to its occurrence. Logistical details include dates, location,
contact names, agenda and any accompanying materials. UNDEF will designate a monitor to attend
the activity. The UNDEF-appointed monitor will contact the Implementing Agency directly to make
final arrangements. The monitor will attend the activity, will take notes and photos, and will collect
materials. The Implementing Agency should provide the monitor with necessary documents, such as
the event agenda, signed list of participants, publications, brochures etc. The monitor will then
compile the details from the monitoring activity and will submit to UNDEF a “Milestone
Verification Report” (MVR). In some cases, UNDEF may decide to conduct a desk review of the
milestone activity in lieu of sending monitors. In these cases, the Implementing Agency will be
required to submit an MVR, photos of the activity and any additional accompanying materials.
B. When the milestone activity has been completed, the Implementing Agency should submit to
UNDEF a Milestone Financial Utilization Report (FUR), certified by the independent and
external auditor indicated in the project document. These financial reports should be in the
required UNDEF format and reflect the amount spent to date. The purpose of the FURs is to compare
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project expenditures against the project budget as agreed to in the signed project document. Please
note that most of the previous tranche [e.g.:70%] must be spent before the next tranche is
disbursed.
Projects are required to attach a short explanation in cases where there has been a change in
the funding schedule or budget allocation. UNDEF will review the FUR and will either approve
the funding request or will revert to the project for further information or discussion. Any significant
financial reallocation compared to the approved project budget requires prior UNDEF
approval. Financial reallocations made without prior UNDEF’s approval will not be accepted,
the implementing agency will be held responsible for over expenditures.
*** The milestone activities chosen for the project as per the signed project
document should correspond to when a new tranche of funds is needed. Therefore,
the Implementing Agency is responsible for informing UNDEF as soon as possible
of any changes in the milestone schedule, which in turn affects the disbursement of
funds. ***
4.2 Mid-term Progress Report
The Mid-term Progress Report must be submitted to UNDEF no later than 13 months from the project
start date (as listed on the cover page of the signed project document). The report should include detailed
information on the status of project implementation, including: the activities that have been completed
and those in progress, an update on funds utilized, and the achievement of project outputs, outcomes and
any unforeseen changes in the project as compared with the signed project document. The report should
also justify any changes made to the implementation of the project as compared with the signed project
document. UNDEF will use this report to determine whether the project is making sufficient progress and
to gauge whether any adjustments in scope, activities or funding are warranted. The Mid-term Progress
Report template is available on the UNDEF website.
4.3 Final Narrative Report
The Implementing Agency is required to submit a Final Narrative Report one month after the
completion of the project. The report must include detailed information on project implementation,
describing the achievement of outputs and outcomes as agreed in the signed project document. The report
should also justify any changes made to the implementation of the project as compared with the signed
project document and should outline lessons learned and best practices. The Final Narrative Report
template is available on the UNDEF website.
4.4 Final Financial Utilization Report
A Final Financial Utilization Report, certified by the independent and external auditor identified in the
project document, must be submitted no later than three months after the project end-date. This report
must include all relevant financial details including expenditures and any income or interest earned. The
Final Financial Utilization Report template is available on the UNDEF website.
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4.5 End of Project Evaluation
UNDEF will inform the Implementing Agency if a project evaluation is to be conducted. Where
evaluations are required, for CSOP projects, UNDEF will either directly commission a project evaluation
or will request the Implementing Agency to organize an independent evaluation using the funds retained
by UNDEF for this purpose. The Implementing Agency is required to take all necessary measures to
facilitate evaluation as and when required by UNDEF or a third party on its behalf.
The final evaluation report may be published on the UNDEF website.
The Implementing Agency is required to feature UNDEF as a donor in all
outreach materials including banners, signs, all written materials and publications
associated with the UNDEF-funded project, as well as on the Implementing
Agency’s website and publication resulting from the implementation of the
UNDEF project.
All presentation will include the UNDEF logo. Any
acknowledgment should include the words ''The United Nations Democracy Fund''
5. Monitoring and Reporting Requirements for CSOP +EA Projects
Reports that do not use the correct template will not be accepted. Templates for financial and
narrative reporting can be found on the UNDEF website.
5.1 Mid-term Progress Report
The Mid-term Progress Report must be submitted to UNDEF no later than 13 months from the project
start date (as listed on the cover page of the signed project document) OR when requesting the second
disbursement of funds, whichever comes first. The report should include detailed information on the
status of project implementation, including the activities that have been completed and those in progress,
an update on funds utilized, and the achievement of project outputs, outcomes and any unforeseen
changes in the project as compared with the signed project document. The report should also justify any
changes made to the implementation of the project as compared with the signed project document.
UNDEF will use this report to determine whether the project is making sufficient progress and to gauge
whether any adjustments in scope, activities or funding are warranted. The Mid-term Progress Report
template is available on the UNDEF website.
.
In the event that the second disbursement of funds is not needed until well after the submission of the
Mid-term Report, the EA must submit a brief project status report to UNDEF. This report will provide
an update on the status of implementation as well as on the current level of funding left after the first
disbursement. No specific template is required for the status report. UNDEF may request additional
information as needed.
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5.2 Final Narrative Report
The Final Narrative Report should be submitted three months after the completion of the project. The
report must include detailed information on project implementation, describing the achievement of
outputs and outcomes as agreed in the signed project document. The report should also justify any
changes made to the implementation of the project as compared with the signed project document and
should outline lessons learned and best practices. The report should also justify any changes and should
outline the lessons learned and best practices. The Final Narrative Report template is available on the
UNDEF website.
5.3 Financial Reports
In accordance with the requirements of UN Secretariat Accounts Division, all UN-Executed projects must
submit the following:
 Annual Interim Financial Statement: to be submitted by 31st January of each project year,
showing cumulative income and expenditure to date. The statement must be signed by the designated
authorized representative at the UN Agency or Country Office (CO).
 Annual Certified Financial Statement: to be submitted by 31st May of each project year, showing
cumulative income and expenditure to date. The statement must be signed by the UN Agency’s
authorized representative at HQ.
 Final Interim Financial Statement: to be submitted three months after the project end date, or
27 months after the approved project start date. The statement should be signed by the designated
authorized representative at the UN Agency or Country Office (CO).
 Final Certified Financial Statement: to be submitted no later than 30th June of the year following
the financial closing of the project. The statement must be signed by the UN Agency’s authorized
financial representative (e.g. Controller) at HQ.
With the exception of the Final Certified Financial statement, all above
mentioned reports must specify the unliquidated obligations (ULOs) (i.e.
funds committed but yet not expended).
All reports must report interest earned on the project funds.
Any significant financial reallocation compared to the approved project
budget requires prior UNDEF approval. Financial reallocations made prior
UNDEF’s approval will not be accepted, the executive agency will be held
responsible for any over expenditures.
For more details, see section 6 below.
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5.4 Evaluation Report
The Executing Agency is responsible for conducting an evaluation at the end of the project. The
cost of the evaluation is covered by the Executing Agency fee. This evaluation should be carried out
by an independent and external entity. Specific evaluation arrangements may have been documented in
the respective project documents and in this case those arrangements should apply. UNDEF will also
liaise with the EA, as necessary, to determine the best course for conducting evaluations. The final
evaluation report may be published on the UNDEF website.
6. Project Revisions and Extensions
6.1 - Project Revisions
A. Revisions that require prior approval from UNDEF:

Changes to a project that affect its scope (outputs, outcomes and objectives), require a project
substantive revision (see 6.2) approved by the UNDEF Office.

Any significant financial reallocation compared to the approved project budget requires
prior UNDEF approval. The request should be made using the Budget Revision Request
Form which is available on the website. These changes should also be mentioned both in the
mid-term and final narrative reports sent to UNDEF. Any financial reallocation where
UNDEF prior agreement was not sought may be refused and the funds may have to be
reimbursed to UNDEF.
B. Revisions that do not require prior approval from UNDEF

Changes to a project that do not affect the scope of the project do not require a project
revision approved by the UNDEF Office. For example, changes in activities to ensure
achievement of an output do not require a project revision. While no specific approval
procedure is required, these changes should be mentioned both in the mid-term and final
narrative reports sent to UNDEF.
6. 2 Substantive revisions
Conditions
A substantive revision involves a change either in the objective, outcomes or outputs of the project.
Providing that the project remains relevant to the objectives of UNDEF and consistent with the
project proposal, revisions can be made at any point during the project lifecycle under one of the
following three circumstances:
A) in response to changes in the national, regional or global context,
B) to adjust the design and resource allocation to ensure the project operates effectively in a
changing environment and/or
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C) to improve project design and/or implementation by clarifying objectives, adjusting results,
indicators, assumptions and/or conditions, and adding or curtailing activities.
Procedure
Substantive project revisions result from a participatory process involving the key stakeholders.
They may be prompted by project team deliberations, by reports from beneficiaries or by monitoring,
evaluation or review activities. Where a project is not proceeding as planned, the Implementing
Agency, and where applicable the Executing Agency, should discuss with all partners ways to
improve project implementation. A revision document should then be drafted and signed by all
signatories to the original signed project document
The revision document must describe changes made to relevant sections of the signed project
document and must include:
-
a cover page with justification as to why the changes are wanted
-
a separate page which details changes in objectives, outputs, activities or inputs. by including
new sections to replace old sections of the project document
-
a revised Results Framework and budget
In case of projects implemented under the Executing Agency management arrangement (CSOP+EA),
the Executing Agency will submit the project revision document to UNDEF.
“Special situations”: project suspension and project revision
A substantive revision may also be needed when a country faces an emergency or a “special
situation.”
In emergency situations, achievement of expected results may be jeopardized if ongoing activities
are no longer appropriate. In such cases, projects may need to suspend ongoing project activities.
In the case of a suspension in project implementation, the suspension needs to be explained formally
to UNDEF including detailed information on the circumstances leading to the suspension of the
project activities. Also, during the suspension, regular updates on the possibility for the project to
restart should be sent to UNDEF.
Once it becomes likely that the project will resume its implementation activities, UNDEF should be
notified in writing of the upcoming resumption and it should be indicated whether a Project Revision
or a Project Extension will be requested.
6.3 - Extension of Project Duration
UNDEF prefers projects to be implemented in accordance with the timetable in the project
document and will only consider "no cost" extensions only in exceptional circumstances. In such
cases, project extensions should be sought using the Project Extension Request Form which is
available on the website. Such extensions do not entail changes in the overall budget. Please note
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that salary and support costs should not exceed the amounts allocated in the approved project
budget.
Extensions will be considered for the shortest justifiable timeframe, and in no circumstances will
they exceed 12 months.
Procedure
In normal circumstances, project extensions need to be requested by the Implementing Agency (or
Executing Agency where applicable) after consultation with all project partners, at least two months
before the initially foreseen project termination date. The form for requesting a project extension is
available on the UNDEF website.
In addition to the extension request form, an updated Results Framework should be enclosed
clearly highlighting the activities already completed at the time of the request and the ones that will
be implemented during the project extension.
Depending on the duration of the extension, the reporting requirements to UNDEF might be
affected and these new requirements will be notified upon approval of the extension request. For
extensions of longer than 4 months, an extension status report should be provided to UNDEF half
way through the extension period. This report should provide an update on the status of project
implementation and disbursement of funds during the extension period, as per the revised Results
Framework. This report should not exceed 3 pages. No specific template is required.
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UNDEF REPORTING TIMETABLE
These reporting requirements apply for projects under the following management arrangements:
- CSO-Implemented projects without Executing Agency (CSOP) (TABLE 1)
- CSO-Implemented projects with UN Executing Agency (CSOP + EA) (TABLE 2)
Where applicable, templates for the reports mentioned below are available in the 5th Round section of the
UNDEF website.
All reports should be sent to the relevant UNDEF project officer, with a copy to democracyfund@un.org.
In addition, all UN financial reports (CSOP+EA) should also be copied to trustfund@un.org indicating
the type of report and the project number in the heading.
TABLE 1 – CSOP Projects
Report Title
Prepared By
Submitted By/To
Deadline
Milestone Verification
Report
UNDEF-appointed
monitor
By UNDEF-appointed
monitor to UNDEF
Following attendance of
milestone activity
Milestone Financial
Utilization Report (FUR)
CSO and certified by the
designated external
auditor
By CSO to UNDEF
Completion of each
Milestone (#2 and #3)
Mid-term Progress Report
CSO
By CSO to UNDEF
13 months after PSD (1)
Final Narrative Report
CSO
By CSO to UNDEF
1 month after project end or
25 months after PSD (1)
Final Financial Utilization
Report (FFUR)
CSO and certified by the
designated external
auditor
By CSO to UNDEF
3 months after project end
or 27 months after PSD (1)
Evaluation Report
Independent entity, or as
decided by UNDEF in
consultation with CSO
By Independent entity to
UNDEF, or as decided
by UNDEF in
consultation with CSO
After submission of Final
Narrative Report
Extension Status Report
CSO
By CSO to UNDEF
Halfway through extension
period, for extensions
longer than 4 months
(if applicable)
(1)The Project Start Date (PSD) is set by UNDEF according to the date of disbursement of 1 st tranche of funds to the
CSO or the UN Agency and is indicated on the cover page of the finalized Project Document.
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TABLE 2 – CSOP + EA Projects (2)
Report Title
Prepared By
Submitted By/To
Deadline
Mid-term Progress Report
UN Agency/CO in
consultation with CSO
By UN Agency/CO to
UNDEF
13 months after PSD (1) OR
when requesting the 2nd
disbursement, whichever is
first
Annual Interim Financial
Statement
UN Agency/CO and
certified by authorized UN
Agency representative
By UN Agency/CO to
UNDEF
By 31st January of each
project year
Annual Certified Financial
Statement
UN Agency/HQ and
certified by authorized UN
Agency representative at
HQ
By UN Agency/HQ to
UNDEF
By 31st May of each
project year
Final Narrative Report
UN Agency/CO in
consultation with CSO
By UN Agency/CO to
UNDEF
3 months after project end
or 27 months after PSD (1)
Final Interim Financial
Statement
UN Agency/CO and
certified by authorized UN
Agency representative
By UN Agency/CO to
UNDEF
3 months after project end
or 27 months after PSD (1)
Evaluation Report
Independent Entity
By UN Agency/CO to
UNDEF
3 months after project end
or 27 months after PSD (1)
Final Certified Financial
Statement
UN Agency/HQ and
certified by authorized UN
Agency representative at
HQ
By UN Agency/HQ to
UNDEF
No later than 30th June of
the year following the
financial closing of the
project
UNDEF Evaluation Report
UNDEF in consultation
with UN Agency/CO and
CSO
By Evaluator to
UNDEF
After submission of
Evaluation Report
UN Agency/CO in
consultation with CSO
By UN Agency/CO to
UNDEF
Halfway through extension
period, for extensions
longer than 4 months
(if applicable)
Extension Status Report
(if applicable)
(1)
The Project Start Date (PSD) is set by UNDEF according to the date of disbursement of 1st tranche of funds to the
CSO or the Executing Agency and is indicated on the cover page of the finalized Project Document.
(2)
Additional requirements may apply for some UN executed projects and should be contained in an agreement
signed between UNDEF and the UN agency/CO. For instance, UNDP executed projects will also refer to the
agreement signed between UNDP and UNDEF
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