Small Grants Advocacy Program 2012

World Pneumonia Day 2012 is coming on November 12^th and we want you to knock out pneumonia in a novel way! Do you have a great idea on how to raise pneumonia awareness in your country? The 2012 Small Grants Program can help turn your ideas into reality to create meaningful change in your community!

Starting May 1, 2012 we want to hear your ideas for World Pneumonia Day events that tackle pneumonia where it has the greatest impact! Winning submissions will be eligible for grants up to USD $10,000 funding, so start brainstorming today! We are looking for creative and impactful ideas that present pneumonia as a problem with solutions and may relate pneumonia to the broader child health context where related issues such as diarrhea have a major impact. Find out more about the 2012 Small Grants Program below and submit your application by May 29, 2012 by 09:00 EST.

Background Information

Pneumonia is the number one killer of children under age 5 worldwide. The disease claims the lives of over 1.5 million children each year – more than HIV, measles and malaria combined – and research has shown that 98% of those deaths occur in the developing world, where there is limited access to health care. These deaths are especially tragic because solutions exist to save young lives. Interventions needed to combat pneumonia such as immunizations, good nutrition, hand washing, exclusive breastfeeding, caregiver education and effective/affordable treatment can greatly reduce the deadly impact of this disease. In addition, several of these interventions are important for the prevention of childhood diarrheal disease, another leading killer of children. For more information on control and prevention of pneumonia, please download the WHO/UNICEF publication, Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Pneumonia.

Worldwide, most people are unaware of the severity of major issues in child health, such as pneumonia. To combat this lack of understanding, the Global Coalition against Child Pneumonia (GCCP) was formed and the first World Pneumonia Day was launched in November 2009 to raise pneumonia awareness. In just three years, World Pneumonia Day has earned international recognition among health leaders, medical professionals, journalists, activists and community advocates as the day for the world to collectively raise its voice and take action on behalf of the millions of children who die from pneumonia each year. To help support creative and lasting advocacy activities, the Small Grants for World Pneumonia Day Advocacy Program was established to provide funding to low and lower-middle-income countries around the world, where pneumonia hits the hardest. Major strides in pneumonia awareness, prevention and control have been made, but more work still needs to be done.

The International Vaccine Access Center (IVAC) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health is pleased to continue the Small Grants for World Pneumonia Day Advocacy Program for the fourth year. To find out more about what kind of events have been supported in the past, please review the 2011 World Pneumonia Day Report, 2010 World Pneumonia Day Report and the 2009 World Pneumonia Day Report.

Program Details

What is a Small Grant?

A small grant supports activities and events aimed at increasing awareness, urgency and action on childhood pneumonia and related child killers like diarrhea on or around World Pneumonia Day, November 12, 2012 and throughout the year. If you have any other questions, please direct them to info@worldpneumoniaday.org.

How much funding is available?

Funding projects will not exceed USD $10,000. Proposed budget for activities or events will be evaluated by the reviewers and awarded accordingly.

What should the funds be used for?

Funds are used to support advocacy events or other activities that resolve or address gaps in pneumonia and other major child health issues, such as diarrhea. For example, you may wish to design advocacy activities that address weak political will, low public awareness, poor access to treatment and prevention, and other issues. For more information about how Small Grants have been used in past years, please download the 2011 World Pneumonia Day Report and the 2010 World Pneumonia Day Report.

When will funds be received?

Grant winners are expected to receive 70% of funding 4-6 weeks after required financial forms are submitted. The remaining 30% of the grant will be given only after all required final reporting and deliverables are submitted.

Who is Eligible to Apply?

Applicants from eligible countries are encouraged to apply but funding is limited. Preference will be given to applications that address aspects of pneumonia action that also relate to other major child killers such as diarrheal disease. Eligibility criteria and expectations are detailed below. Please note that only a limited number of awards are available and that the small grants application process is highly competitive. Unfortunately, not all applications can be awarded a grant.

Eligibility Criteria & Expectations:

Ideas must be creative and impactful in presenting pneumonia as a problem with solutions. Events should focus on advocacy and communication of pneumonia prevention or control, or contribute to the acceleration of child survival efforts. The activities should address gaps in pneumonia prevention and control, including weak political will, low public awareness, poor access to treatment and prevention, etc.
Applicant or organization MUST be from one of the following low or lower-middle-income countries (as defined by the World Bank): Afghanistan, Angola, Armenia, Bangladesh, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Rep., Congo, Dem. Rep, Cote d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt Arab Rep., El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bisau, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Indonesia, India, Iraq, Kenya, Kiribati, Kosovo, Kyrgyz Republic, Lao PDR, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Micronesia, Fed. Sts., Moldova, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Philippines, Rwanda, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Sri Lanka, South Sudan, North Sudan, Swaziland, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vietnam, West Bank and Gaza, Yemen, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Partnerships between developing country applicants and industrialized country co-applicants may be accepted, but the primary applicant must be based in an eligible country as defined above.

Individuals or groups should be affiliated with an established non-profit organization (e.g. pediatric association, advocacy group, civil society organization, faith-based organization, child survival or maternal and child health group, etc.), academic institution (e.g. university, college) or technical institution (e.g. hospital, clinic).
Individuals and affiliated institutions MUST be able to provide financial oversight of the award and to deliver detailed financial reports. Funding cannot be used for commercial purposes or the promotion of a marketable product. All additional sources of funding for planned activities must be disclosed.
In addition to reporting, awardees must submit publishable, professional-level photography, videos and stories showcasing the activity or event after its completion. Failure to do so will result in ineligibility for future grant opportunities and withholding of final grant payment amount.

What we are looking for:

We are looking for ideas or activities that effectively spread the message of World Pneumonia Day 2012 and help promote the global fight against pneumonia and child mortality. Ideas that impact other major issues in child health, such as diarrhea, will be given additional consideration. In addition, events do not need to occur only on or World Pneumonia Day, November 12, 2012. We encourage you to think of how your events can unfold over time to build excitement and advocacy leading up to World Pneumonia Day and to consider event timing that makes sense in your context, for example, National Children’s Day. In addition, it will be important to focus your idea on a specific audience or outcome. Preference will be given to proposals with a clear and focused problem, audience and solution.

We challenge you to be original.

Be creative! Ideas and events that are memorable will make an impact on your audience and their understanding of pneumonia. In the application, we give examples of events that have been used to achieve goals, but please feel free to think “outside the box.” Effective events attract attention from key stakeholders such as media, policymakers and the community to encourage them to join in the cause. We are particularly interested in creative solutions to the stumbling blocks that prevent the public from having access to protection, prevention and treatment measures.

Events and activities should aim to:

Increase visibility of pneumonia and other major issues in child health among key stakeholders, especially policymakers, health officials, media, governments, donors and the general public.
Increase visibility of causes and solutions available to combat childhood pneumonia. These solutions include: immunization, breastfeeding and nutrition, appropriate case management at community health center and hospital levels, hand washing and improved indoor air quality.
Generate information to guide local policies and action around pneumonia control.
Educate the general public, especially parents and caretakers of children, about pneumonia signs, symptoms and treatment.

Your ideas and applications will be judged on:

Creativity and originality
How well-connected the idea is to the desired outcome
Clear identification of problem with a focused solution and audience
Relevance to national or local setting
How the proposal supports global activities in and around World Pneumonia Day
Feasibility (ability to carry-out idea)
Long-term impact
Efficient use of funding

When are applications due?

Submissions will be accepted online from May 1^st until May 29^th by 09:00 EST. No extensions will be given. All applicants will be notified if they have been selected to receive a Small Grant or if their application was denied. Decisions will be made by mid-June. Activities must be completed by November 30, 2012.