• Introduction
• Program Overview
• NIF is not a Grant
• NIF Program Management
• Principles and Guidelines
• General Policies and Conditions
• NIF Proposal Application Process
• The Proposal Form
• Project Management
• Audit and Review
• Glossary
• Appendices
• Forms
• Reporting Requirements

(.pdf version - 280 KB)

About Adobe Acrobat PDF Documents

7.0 NIF PROPOSAL APPLICATION PROCESS

7.1 Pre-application Process

Prior to submitting a proposal to the NIF, discuss the proposal idea with the appropriate sponsor and/or with the Secretariat. The Secretariat can provide valuable information about NIF policies and program guidelines, and direct potential applicants to the appropriate sponsor. Sponsors may request a preliminary outline or letter of intent (LOI) from potential applicants, and will provide assistance to applicants in developing complete proposals. All applicants must develop proposals in partnership with other organizations and have them approved at the local, provincial/territorial and/or national level prior to submission to NIF Sponsors. This will help ensure that proposals developed have been subjected to a priority setting process and address real/current SAR needs.

7.2 Preparation of Proposals

Applicants MUST follow the instructions and submit complete and thorough proposals. Proposals that do not conform to the standard format will not be accepted. Instructions are provided in italics on the proposal forms on the following pages. Blank templates for all NIF forms displayed in this guide are available through the Secretariat website. Applicants are encouraged to provide all proposal documents, attachments, and supplementary information electronically. Information on proposal application dates is available on the NSS website.

7.3 Review of Proposals

Once proposals are received at the Secretariat, Secretariat NIF Program Managers conduct an initial review of each one. The NIF sponsor will be notified if proposal(s) are incomplete or need further clarification. Scoring will be based on the information provided in the NIF proposal, so it is essential that the proposals be complete and address all requirements. If any deficiencies are identified, they must be addressed and the proposal(s) re-submitted to the Secretariat by the date specified, otherwise they will not be forwarded to the NIF Merit Board for consideration. To see the checklist used by the Secretariat and NIF Sponsors during the initial review phase consult Appendix C.

7.4 Proposal Assessment and Scoring

Proposals that meet the screening process are assembled and sent to the NIF Merit Board, where they are carefully reviewed and scored based on the scoring criteria outlined in Appendix D. The NIF Merit Board consists of one representative from each ICSAR department/agency as well as one provincial/territorial representative.

Once all scores have been received, the proposals are ranked in descending order based on their average scores, and the ranked list is distributed to NIF Merit Board members. The Secretariat then chairs the NIF Merit Board meeting, at which the ranked list is approved and sent to ICSAR and the Lead Minister for final approval.

7.5 Proposal Approval

Once the ranked list is approved by the Lead Minister, the Secretariat signs each of the approved proposals. This document will become the Annex to the Memorandum of Understanding between the Secretariat and the NIF Sponsor for the NIF project.

NIF Sponsors are notified of proposal approvals in writing by April 1.

7.6 Project Start

Approved proposals may begin on April 1, subject to the receipt of written approval and authorization.