RAPID Fund Fact Sheet
CONCERN WORLDWIDE PAKISTAN
Responding to Pakistan’s
Internally Displaced (RAPID) Fund
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
This question and answer fact sheet should help you understand all aspects of the RAPID Fund. . If you
decide that you wish to apply for funding under the RAPID Fund you will need to read the Instructions to
Applicants form and complete the Proposal Form.
1. What is RAPID Fund?
Responding to Pakistan’s Internally Displaced (RAPID) Fund is funding mechanism which has been
established under a cooperative agreement between Concern Worldwide and the USAID Office of US
Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA). Under this agreement, OFDA are funding Concern
Worldwide in Pakistan to administer a fund which can be used by other organizations in Pakistan to
respond quickly to the urgent needs of Pakistanis displaced due to conflicts, crises and disasters in
Pakistan. Recognising that Pakistan is prone to disasters and crises, the rationale for this type of
umbrella grant is the need to be able to channel funding quickly to meet the urgent needs of IDPs as
they arise in Pakistan. The RAPID Fund in Pakistan is similar to approaches that OFDA have supported in
other countries eg., SHARE program in Sri Lanka implemented by UMCOR.
RAPID Fund is interested in supporting organisations with practical solutions to the needs of IDPs that
can be delivered quickly and effectively to save lives and alleviate suffering. We want to fund
interventions that address gaps and meet tangible needs of IDPs that have been overlooked.
2. How long will RAPID Fund be available?
RAPID Fund will be operational till 31st March 2011. Based on the evaluated effectiveness of RAPID Fund
it could be extended or adapted or it may discontinue after this time.
3. Who is eligible to apply?
Pakistani and international non-profit, non-governmental organizations that are registered and legally
permitted to provide humanitarian aid by the Pakistani authorities are eligible to apply.
4. Is Concern or its current partners eligible to apply?
Concern Worldwide is not eligible to apply to RAPID Fund as conflicts of interest could obviously arise by
being involved in the appraisal of the proposal. Local partners of Concern Worldwide are eligible to
apply to RAPID Fund.
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5. What are the funding limits? How much money is available in the RAPID Fund pot?
Grants will be a minimum of PKR 425,000 (US$5000) and a maximum of PKR 25,500,000 (US$300,000).
6. What should be the duration of the interventions?
The whole idea of RAPID Fund is to facilitate short, sharp interventions which bring immediate relief to
the people in disasters. It is felt that there are numerous existing funding mechanisms for medium term
and longer term projects. The maximum time duration of interventions will be 3 months under RAPID
Fund which can only be extended due to exceptional circumstances.
7. What are the target areas?
This Call for Proposals is targeted at organizations that respond to the needs created by the conflicts in
FATA and recent torrential rain and flooding (2011) in the worst affected districts as identified by the
NDMA/PDMA in Sindh Province. The RAPID Fund will accept applications for Badin, Tando Mohd Khan,
Umerkot, Shaheed Benazir Abad, Tando Allahyar, Sanghar, Khairpur, Mirpurkhas , Tharparker, Naushero
Feroze and FATA.
Proposals should be made for these areas/districts where clear needs and gaps are identified and where
there is no other agency providing similar assistance to flood affectees. In areas where water has not yet
receded, the RAPID Fund will prioritise relief/life-saving activities while in areas where the water has
receded, the RAPID Fund will focus on early recovery needs according to OFDA and NDMA strategies.
Preference will be given for projects that are designed by local and international organizations which
have a strong presence in these districts and have relevant sectoral experience.
8. What are the target sectors?
There are 09 target sectors for RAPID Response. These are:
 Health
 Logistics Support and Relief Commodities
 Shelter and Settlements
 Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
 Economic Recovery and Market Systems (ERMS)
 Agriculture and Food Security
 Nutrition
 Protection
 Humanitarian Coordination and Information Management
These sectors have been pre-approved by OFDA and all proposals must be related to one or more of
these sectors. There are certain sub-sectors within each sector that RAPID Fund will support. The
eligible sub-sectors are all described clearly in the guidance sheets linked to each sector listed above. As
these have been pre-approved by OFDA, the target sectors and sub-sectors will not change. For priority
sectors, please see the most recent ‘Call for Proposal’.
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9. Will there be calls for proposals or can we just send a proposal anytime?
There are two application mechanisms. Concern will be launching calls for proposals at different times
in response to the assessed situation. In such calls for proposals, Concern will advise the sectors and
target areas to be prioritised. If you feel there are needs outside of these prioritised areas,
organisations can submit proposals at any time as an unsolicited application. The focus, in terms of fast
turnaround, will be on the official calls, but Concern will make every effort to ensure unsolicited
proposals are also dealt with promptly
10. How will Calls for Proposals be announced?
Calls for proposals will be announced through structures such as the Pakistan Humanitarian Forum,
clusters and through informal networks of local organizations in Pakistan. Information relating to calls
for proposals will be posted on Concern Worldwide Pakistan’s website http://www.concern.net/wherewe-work/asia/pakistan/rapid-fund
11. How do organisations apply?
There is a standard format for proposals which should be used regardless of whether the proposal is a
response to a call for proposals or unsolicited. The format includes a standard budget format as well as
narrative. In order to promote speedy turnaround, all applications should be completed and submitted
electronically to the (email: rapid.applications@concern.net )
12. What about 100% funding and co-funding?
RAPID Fund can fund up to 100% of the costs of the intervention. If the applicant also has another
donor or funds of its own to support the same intervention, this should be mentioned in the proposal.
RAPID Fund contribution should constitute at least 50% of the total cost of the intervention. If the
intervention is being co-funded, there must be clear outputs and results that can be attributed to the
RAPID Fund support.
13. Can projects be backdated?
Yes, within reason, provided that activities have just started and are not otherwise funded. This means
that you can commence an emergency response prior to approval from RAPID Fund but, of course, you
run the risk of the proposal not being approved by RAPID Fund. The quick turnaround times of the
RAPID Fund should reduce the need for back dating.
14. How will proposals be appraised?
All proposals received will be appraised by a panel within Concern (with external technical expertise as
required) against set criteria. The selection process is not about choosing the organisations that can
write the best proposal. Being able to write a good proposal requires a different skill set to being able to
implement a good intervention. The appraisal process will include discussions with applicants where
necessary and where the timeframe permits so that the panel can make an informed opinion. The
proposals are then quickly reviewed by OFDA in Islamabad and those recommended for approval are
sent to Headquarters in USA for final approval.
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15. Can we get help to complete the proposal form?
As mentioned above RAPID Fund is not about rewarding good proposal writers. RAPID Fund aims to
support interventions that will alleviate suffering of people in conflicts and disasters and with this
overall objective in mind we will adopt a flexible and supportive approach to partnerships as much as
possible. All organisations will need to submit a proposal capturing their intervention to initiate the
process. If the appraisers feel that the intervention has merit but this is not well written in the proposal,
Concern could opt to support the organisation to better express their proposed intervention.
16. How long will it take to process our proposal?
Our aim is to provide a response to applicants within a week of receiving proposals. We envisage that
within 48 hours of that decision, Concern and the partner organisation will have signed contracts and
the first tranche will have been transferred. Applicants whose proposal has been rejected will usually be
notified within 5 working days of submission. Applicants are welcome to contact the Assistant Program
Director to find out the status of their proposal if they have not had feedback within these timeframes.
All applicants whose proposal has been rejected can receive feedback explaining the basis for this
decision upon request.
17. What level of assessment are you looking for in proposals?
You will need to have as much information as you need to make an informed decision about the type of
intervention. Given that time is of the essence, prolonged assessments are not recommended. Gather
as much qualitative and quantitative data that is indicative of the situation in order to design your
intervention. Responding to the needs of people in conflicts and disasters is not new in Pakistan so the
broad types of interventions have been well practiced. This does not mean that your organisation
should not try new approaches or innovative delivery systems that suit the crisis. RAPID Fund would
encourage organisations to undertake joint assessments and draw upon the findings of sister
organisations to feed into your own understanding of the situation. The RAPID Fund hopes to be
valuable in the facilitation of the sharing if assessment information amongst stakeholders to bring wider
benefit to the flood and conflict affectees.
18. Can we modify our intervention during the implementation?
The short timeframe of three months will ordinarily preclude significant modifications. However at the
same time, should vital gaps or overlap become apparent during the course of implementation, it would
be sensible to propose a modification in writing. RAPID Fund would usually make a quick decision on
this request.
19. How will RAPID Fund transfer funds to us?
The funding schedule for each intervention will be agreed with each partner at the time of finalising
contracts. This will be based on consideration of the different nature of the interventions and the
different resourcing capacities of organisations. As a guide, large national organisations and
international organisations will typically receive 50% of the total grant at time of signing contracts. 40%
of the grant will be transferred upon satisfactory mid-term review and remaining 10% transferred after
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the successful completion of the project. The transfer of funds subsequent to the first tranche is based
on satisfactory performance and thus linked to the monitoring and reporting process. Funds transfers
will be made to the nominated bank account of the partner organization.
20. How much of our administration and indirect costs will RAPID Fund support?
RAPID Fund will cover a reasonable amount of indirect costs provided these can be clearly linked to the
delivery of the intervention. It is our belief that many of the interventions will be input intensive and
this should be reflected in the budgets by a high proportion of costs on direct aid delivery. However
there may also be interventions (or activities within interventions) which are more process driven e.g.
hygiene behaviour change and protection requiring more human resources. These factors will be taken
into account in the appraisal of your proposal. Basically as with most donors, you will need to be able
justify your administration and indirect costs in terms of achieving the goal of the intervention. In the
budget format, you will need to complete the budget narrative for each budget line and your
justification for these costs will need to be included here.
21. Any tips to help my proposal?
International NGOs will need to demonstrate the value they add to the intervention. Although
international staff can be funded under RAPID Fund, we also believe that there is high capacity within
the Pakistani humanitarian community and this should be utilised as the first option. Along the same
lines, it is suggested that organisations keep their administration costs to a minimum. Cost per
beneficiary and value per beneficiary are factors that will be considered in the appraisal process. If the
extra administrative cost of the international organisation outstrips the added value in terms of a quality
intervention, the proposal may not be funded.
All organizations will need to demonstrate that they have the technical capacity and practical
understanding of the situation in the target area to be able to launch an effective response. Local
organisations (whether as lead implementers or implementing partners), are seen as vital in regards to
the latter issue. The RAPID Fund is unlikely to fund a proposal which does not include partners that have
worked in the target area. The previous track record of your organization will be taken into account in
regards to demonstrating technical skills to manage the intervention.
22. Coordination is not mentioned in the proposal form – does this mean we don’t have to do it?
Coordination is not mentioned in the proposal form because it is assumed that all organisations will
incorporate coordination as a routine part of their intervention. Concern will help coordination by
sharing details of different interventions amongst RAPID Fund partners. At the field level your
organisation will be expected to coordinate with the local authorities and, other organisations working
in the same area and sector as well as other stakeholders as appropriate.
23. Are there any relief items that are prohibited due to USAID/OFDA restrictions?
Yes and these are mentioned (where applicable) in the Guidance Notes for each sector. Basically the
following items cannot be purchased by grants from the RAPID Fund:
 Vehicles
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




Land
Pesticides
Fertilizer
Used equipment
US government owned excess property.
In addition there are restrictions about the purchase of pharmaceuticals and seeds. Organisations
proposing procurement of these items should read the Guidance Sheets on Health.
24. Will RAPID Fund support capacity building?
Some organizations may require capacity building in crucial areas that is short, sharp and practical in
order to reach anticipated high levels of quality aid delivery. Recognizing that the RAPID Fund is a means
to deliver urgent humanitarian aid and not intended to be a capacity building fund, capacity building will
only be provided when it is deemed vital to the effective delivery of aid and in line with the
intervention’s goals. These inputs will be agreed upon with the partner at the start of implementation or
as the needs become apparent during the course of Concern’s monitoring of the partner’s activities.
Capacity building will be delivered in a way so as to not interrupt the implementation of activities.
Amongst the Concern team will be staff with practical experience in all general aspects of emergency
response, finance management, security management and procurement as well as the ability to transfer
these skills to others. Concern has already prepared training modules on these topics and these will be
followed in the formal capacity building components. It is not expected that partners will require
capacity building of a more technical nature as you should have these skills in order to be eligible for the
grant. Through the provision of supportive monitoring, Concern will be providing on the job capacity
building to the implementing partners (especially the local organizations).
25. Can an organisation submit more than one proposal?
Yes, but the organisation will need to demonstrate that it has the capacity to implement more than one
intervention and manage multiple grants to the expected quality. The RAPID Fund is not about ensuring
that funds are evenly shared amongst the humanitarian community in Pakistan. The RAPID Fund will
support the interventions that best meet the needs of the target group.
26. What are the reporting requirements?
The reporting requirements are straightforward and have been designed so as to provide the level of
information required to help us understand progress and achievements without placing too much
additional burden on partners which may detract resources away from implementation. Typically,
partners will be required to provide one midterm report as well as an intervention completion report.
The midterm report will follow a simple format and will only be about 2 pages in length and partners are
expected to submit this within a week of the half-way point of the implementation based on the
approved timeframe. A financial report is required at the midterm stage using the set format. The final
report (Intervention Completion Report) will also follow a set format and will need to be submitted
within two weeks of completion of the intervention. The Intervention Completion Report will include a
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financial report explaining how funds were used against the approved budget. A useful flowchart
showing the typical monitoring and reporting process for RAPID Fund partners is available.
27. Who will monitor and evaluate the intervention?
You will need to describe how you will monitor the intervention in the proposal. Basically you will need
to have a clear monitoring plan that simply shows methodical monitoring of quality and delivery. In
terms of Concern’s monitoring of your intervention, we will have a standard monitoring and reporting
plan with each partner which may need to be adapted to suit the needs of individual organizations.
Concern will employ four Monitoring and Support Officers who will visit projects on a methodical basis
according to an agreed schedule. They will do at least one monitoring visit to each partner’s intervention
at least once during the project cycle to trouble shoot and provide support. Less experienced
organizations may require more frequent visits and this could be agreed during the course of
implementation or at the outset.
As the job title implies the role of the monitoring and support officers is to assist the implementing
agencies and they are expected to be an asset to the intervention. Partners will be encouraged to
consult with them during the implementation and discuss issues as they arise. Remember, it is in the
mutual interests of Concern and, OFDA as well as the implementing partners to make the intervention a
success and our efforts should all be directed towards this goal. After each visit, the Monitoring and
Support officer will prepare a report of their visit using a standard format which will be shared with the
partners and presented in a consolidated form to the weekly Joint Review meetings (consisting of RAPID
Fund management team) for discussion. In these meetings, issues relating to individual grants or
projects will be flagged and a plan to respond will be agreed. The response could include meetings
between RAPID Fund and your organization; follow up monitoring visits; more specific support
measures; and provision of technical or management support to the partner. If there are significant
issues with the intervention that cannot be resolved through these measures, RAPID Fund may seek to
terminate the project and initiate fund recovery etc.
In respect of financial monitoring RAPID Fund finance team may request to verify expenses of partner
organizations through a physical check of financial records and primary documents during or upon
completion of the intervention. Partner organizations must keep proper financial records to explain
how money provided by RAPID Fund was used.
There will be an internal review of the RAPID Fund as a scheme approximately midway through its nine
month duration. There will also be an external evaluation of the overall performance of the RAPID Fund
after its completion. As part of these processes, evaluators will need to meet with and visit
interventions of partner organizations. Given the short duration of the interventions to be funded by
the RAPID Fund, partners are not expected to conduct evaluations of their interventions.
28. What other support will Concern provide during implementation?
If Concern feels that the logistics systems or the capacity to manage transparent procurement that
ensures speedy delivery and value for money are lacking, Concern may assist the RAPID Fund recipient
organization with the procurement function. This will be agreed beforehand with the partner
organisation.
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29. What about advocacy?
RAPID Fund aims to provide direct and tangible benefits to IDPs when and where it is most needed. This
should be reflected in your intervention. At the same time RAPID Fund recognises that sometimes
structural and policy issues negatively impact on the beneficiaries and delivery of aid. By working with a
range of partners addressing the multitude of needs of IDPs across Pakistan, the RAPID Fund hopes to be
able to channel attention to issues affecting IDPs from the field to higher levels. Unfortunately, the
changing situation and emerging issues are often not reported by implementing partners to donors and
this can be due to partners not fully understanding needs of donor organizations, partners narrowing
their focus merely to deliver the stated project, or a misplaced fear that by reporting a changing
situation, donors may lose interest in their project. Realizing these limitations, Concern will try to
establish relations with partners that transcend these boundaries and promote partners to take on a
wider role in the gathering, sharing and analysis of information as it pertains to wider issues affecting
the situation of conflict and disaster affected communities.
Transfer of information from partners in the field will be used to evoke an informed response from
RAPID Fund where possible. The response may include informing other organizations, groups and
stakeholders in order to cross check relevancy and accuracy and assist in a more coordinated response
from the wider humanitarian community. It may be appropriate to raise these issues to humanitarian
policy makers and strategists outside of Pakistan. OFDA can support shaping of relevant US government
policy with information arising from the field about IDP needs and issues. Through the RAPID Fund there
is an opportunity to address vital issues affecting the IDPs in Pakistan with a common voice amongst the
decision making circles.
30. What about branding? Will we have to stick Concern and OFDA logos everywhere?
No. Under the cooperation agreement between Concern and OFDA, a waiver has been granted in terms
of branding based on security risks and this will apply to RAPID Fund recipient organisations. However if
partners feel that it is appropriate to publicly acknowledge the contribution of OFDA without raising
security concerns, they are welcome to do so. Partners are encouraged to acknowledge the
contribution of OFDA in their communications wherever appropriate.
31. Will you be sharing information between different implementing organisations?
Yes. By having relationships with a range or partners, RAPID Fund sees the potential to add value to the
overall IDP response in Pakistan by sharing information amongst humanitarian actors including best or
innovative practices. In addition, RAPID Fund will be able to feed into coordination mechanisms like the
sector clusters at Islamabad level by sharing the interventions being implemented by partner
organizations.
32. What about accountability to beneficiaries?
RAPID Fund believes strongly in accountability to beneficiaries and it is hoped that our partners will
share these values. There are some minimum measures that RAPID Fund partners will need to adopt in
regards to downward accountability. In addition your organization may wish to instigate more
substantive downward accountability mechanisms in line with Humanitarian Accountability Partnership
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(HAP) standards (go to http://www.hapinternational.org/). For these organizations, Concern may be
able to provide some support as appropriate to the intervention.
33. Is there anything else we should know?
Yes. All RAPID Fund recipient organizations need to commit to actions which protect beneficiaries.
Mainstreaming protection in your intervention at the operational level is an important part of your
obligations. At the organizational level, as a condition of receiving the grant from RAPID Fund, all
recipient organizations must be willing to adopt the Program Participant Protection Policy (4Ps) and
Code of Conduct throughout the implementation of the intervention if they are unable to show that
they have a similar policy already in place which serves the same function. Concern will provide
orientation sessions on the Program Participant Protection Policy and Code of Conduct to all new
partner organizations who do not have their own equivalent policy. Adopting the policy and code of
conduct means that all staff involved in the intervention will need to read and sign the policy and Code
of Conduct; management agrees to promote adherence to the policy and take action if there is evidence
of breeches. Accordingly, you are strongly urged to familiarize yourself with these documents prior to
submitting your proposal to RAPID Fund.
Prior to approving a proposal, each organization (including local partner organizations), their senior
management staff and board, and the names of the financial institutions that they use will be checked
against the following three lists of restricted persons and organisations:
1. The European Union list of person, groups and entities to which Regulation (EC) No. 2580/2001
applies;
2. The US government’s Office of Foreign Assets Control list of Specially Designated Nationals and
Blocked Persons; and
3. The United Nations Consolidated List.
Note that all Concern Worldwide staff are subject to the same policies, code of conduct and checks.
34. That’s all very interesting but you still haven’t answered my question.......
If, after reading the Proposal Form, Instructions to Applicants and Guidance Notes (see links at the top
of this document or go to http://www.concern.net/where-we-work/asia/pakistan/rapid-fund, you have
further questions about the RAPID Fund and how to apply please contact the Grants Officer by email
rapid.applications@concern.net
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