Civil Society Organisations are invited to propose projects for funding from the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund (CEPF) in the Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany Hotspot. This is the second call for proposals in this Hotspot and will focus solely on the themes and geographic areas identified below. The call is for applications to both the large and small grants components of the investment and will remain open until 17h00 (CAT) on the 15th of February 2011. Requirements for the application process are detailed below.
CEPF is a joint initiative of l’Agence Française de Dévelopement, Conservation International, the Global Environment Facility, the Government of Japan, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the World Bank. CEPF is designed to safeguard biodiversity hotspots – the richest and most threatened reservoirs of plant and animal life on earth. In 2005 The Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany region was identified as a global biodiversity hotspot. This area spans 275,000km², stretching from Xai-Xai in Mozambique in the north to Port Elizabeth in the south. It is a meeting place of six biomes and includes three centers of plant species endemism.
In September 2010 CEPF contracted the Wildlands Conservation Trust as Regional Implementation Team for the investment in the Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany Hotspot. A fundamental goal of the CEPF investment is to ensure civil society is engaged in biodiversity conservation. As a result, the primary objective of the investment is strengthening the involvement and effectiveness of civil society in conservation and the management of globally important biodiversity. In order to achieve this goal CEPF developed an Ecosystem Profile for the Hotspot, identifying five strategic funding directions, covering 22 Key Biodiversity Areas and two corridors within the hotspot. The Ecosystem Profile is available online at www.cepf.net and all potential applicants should refer to the Ecosystem Profile in developing project concepts for consideration.
This call for proposals focus specifically on the following themes and geographic areas and applicants are requested to propose projects that will support the achievement of the following outcomes:
1. The Lubombo Conservancy in Swaziland is strengthened through institutional development and through the development and implementation of an Integrated Management Plan, promoting communication and cooperation between private and communal land owners (Strategic Direction 1, Key Biodiversity Area 6)
2. Conservation is integrated in landscape management in the Lower Tugela Valley and a conservation corridor, incorporating the Harold Johnson Nature Reserve, private and commercial lands, is established and secured through biodiversity stewardship (Strategic Direction 2, Key Biodiversity Area 8);
3. A mechanism is in place to facilitate open dialogue amongst the cities and metropolitan areas of the Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany Hotspot, allowing for the sharing of expertise and knowledge in urban conservation and the establishment of urban conservation stewardship initiatives (Strategic Directions 2 and 4, Key Biodiversity Areas 2 and 18);
4. The formal conservation area in the Mountain Zebra National Park Complex is expanded through biodiversity stewardship, creating conservation corridors between formal and de facto conservation areas (Strategic Direction 2, Key Biodiversity Area 12);
5. Habitats, critical for the conservation of threatened and endemic plants and animals in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands are conserved through biodiversity stewardship and the management of these areas is improved (Strategic Direction 2, Key Biodiversity Areas 1, 3, 10 and 11);
6. The Mkambati Reserve and surrounding communities are buffered against inappropriate developments, through an increased area under conservation, the establishment of co-management between conservation authorities and surrounding communities and improved land-use in the surrounding areas (Strategic Directions 2 and 3, Key Biodiversity Area 15, Pondoland Corridor);
7. Improved watershed management of the Umzimvubu river from source to the sea through innovative partnerships with local communities (Strategic Direction 3, Highlands Grasslands and Pondoland Corridors);
8. Conservation practises are integrated in land reform agreements to expand conservation management and sustain livelihood opportunities (Strategic Direction 2, Key Biodiversity Areas 4,13 14, 15, 16, 19, 20 and 21);
9. Conservation management is initiated in the Hogsback/Stutterheim Key Biodiversity Area to significantly improve both climate change resilience and the outlook for a number of threatened species (Strategic Direction 2, Key Biodiversity Area 5);
10. The management of the Marine Protected Areas adjacent to the Mkambati and Dwesa/Cwebe Reserves is significantly improved through public-private partnerships and civil society involvement (Strategic Direction 1, Key Biodiversity Area 15);
11. A sustainable mechanism for the Payment of Ecosystem Services is developed and piloted in the Highlands Grasslands Corridor, leading to improved watershed management and socio-economic development (Strategic Direction 3, Highlands Grasslands Corridor);
12. A formal conservation area is established in the North Eastern Cape Key Biodiversity Area ensuring the protection and delivery of critical Ecological Goods and Services through partnership between national and provincial conservation agencies, local communities and civil society organisations (Strategic Directions 2 and 3; Key Biodiversity Area 14, Highlands Grasslands Corridor);
13. Civil Society participation in conservation is increased and coordinated through the establishment and strengthening of institutional arrangements that promote lesson sharing between and amongst organisations active in the Hotspot (Strategic Direction 4).
Non-governmental organisations, community groups, private enterprises, and other civil society applicants may apply for funding. Organisations must have their own bank account and be authorised under relevant national laws to receive charitable contributions. Government-affiliated enterprises or institutions are eligible only if they can demonstrate that the enterprise or institution (i) has a legal personality independent of any government agency or actor; (ii) has the authority to apply for and receive private funds; and (iii) may not assert a claim of sovereign immunity. Among the many eligible entities, as described above, those that most exemplify civil society and can build civil society capacity are particularly encouraged to apply. Applications that include civil society actors with limited capacity that may not otherwise be eligible or able to apply (for example, community groups) are also encouraged. Further, individuals are encouraged to work with civil society organisations to develop applications, rather than to apply directly. Anyone who is uncertain of their eligibility or likelihood of receiving funding from CEPF should contact the Wildlands Conservation Trust RIT at cepf-rit@localhost/import-data-post
Grants cannot be used for: (i) purchase of land, involuntary resettlement of people (including displacement of land uses), or activities that negatively affect physical cultural resources, including those important to local communities; (ii) activities adversely affecting Indigenous Peoples or where these communities have not provided their broad support to the project activities; or(iii) removal or alteration of any physical cultural property (including sites having archaeological, palaeontological, historical, religious, or unique natural values). Proposed activities must observe all other World Bank safeguard and social policies at:
· http://go.worldbank.org/WTA1ODE7T0
All applicants must submit a LOI. The LOI form is available at
· http://www.cepf.net/grants/apply/Pages/default.aspx
Before submitting formal LOIs, applicants are encouraged to discuss proposal ideas and eligibility with the Wildlands Conservation Trust RIT at cepf-rit@localhost/import-data-post .
As stated above, CEPF supports biodiversity conservation through two types of grants, core grants of over US $20,000 and small grants of US$ 20,000 or less. Completed LOIs for core grants of over US $20,000 should be sent as an e-mail attachment to cepfgrants@conservation.org . Receipt will be acknowledged by e-mail, and applicants will be contacted thereafter as to how to proceed. Completed LOIs for small grants of US $20,000 or less should be sent as an email attachment tocepfgrants@localhost/import-data-post . Questions or concerns during this process can be sent to cepf-rit@localhost/import-data-post
Please note that hard copy LOIs are not acceptable. Further information and assistance can be obtained from:
Dr. Roelie Kloppers, Project Leader, CEPF-RIT, Wildlands Conservation Trust, Suite 7, Tower Block B, 57 Hilton Road, Hilton, KwaZulu-Natal, Republic of South Africa.
Email: mailto:cepf-rit@localhost/import-data-post ; Website: www.localhost/import-data-post /mpah ; facebook page
