Guidelines for progress reporting - Civil Society Support (170.70)

Guidance in Norwegian can be found here.

Norad will accept any format that covers the elements described in Article 2 of Part 2 of the Agreement (General Conditions) and any additional elements included in Part 1 of the Agreement (Specific Conditions). The report should be kept short (5-10 pages). Annexes may be submitted in addition.

Please check the agreement for reporting requirements and customise the report as needed.

Reporting requirements for progress reports, financial reports and audits are stipulated in the agreement with Norad, see Articles 6.1 and 7 of Part 1 of the Agreement (Specific Conditions) and Articles 2, 3 and 5 of Part 2 of the Agreement (General Conditions). The deadline for submission is stated in the agreement. The Guidelines for progress reporting - Civil Society Support covers a potential agreement requirement that Norad/the Civil society department’s standard reporting format or guidelines shall be used.

The progress report should provide a brief and concise account of the progress of the project/programme for the period in question, in accordance with the planned results, as detailed in the agreement. The report should be kept at an overarching and/or aggregated level, and highlight key trends of the project. During the first years of the project cycle the progress report may be kept short and focus mainly on key deviations.

Note that for the Civil Society Support, the Guidelines for final reporting - Civil Society Support - is used both for the second last year (results report) and the last year of the support period. The reporting for the second last year, that includes the results of the first 3-4 years of the support period, will be used by Norad in the assessment of a potential new grant application. The report after the last year covers the results of the entire support period and is an update of the results report the previous year.

The following must be submitted with the progress report:

1. Updated results data reporting on actual achievements (results framework or similar document)
2. Financial report with audited financial statements
3. Audit report and, where applicable, management letter
4. Any evaluations or other reviews of the project

The report should always be based on the latest approved application, results framework (or similar document), budget, etc.

The report shall be dated and signed by an authorised representative of the grant recipient, thereby confirming that the information provided in the report is correct.

The list below is not a report template but intended as a guide on which topics we expect to be covered in the report.

1. General

1.1 Name of the grant recipient:

1.2 Norad’s agreement number:   

1.3 Norad’s agreement title:

1.4 Total grant amount:

1.5 Agreement period (dd.mm.yyyy – dd.mm.yyyy):

1.6 Reporting period (dd.mm.yyyy - dd.mm.yyyy):

1.7 Country(es) of implementation:

2. Progress and results

2.1 Summary

Provide a brief account of progress in relation to planned results, as described in the agreement. The reporting should reflect where the project is in the project cycle, with a gradually increased focus on contributions to change at outcome level. Assess the project’s contributions to effects at impact level where possible. See Article 2 of Part 2 of the Agreement (General Conditions).

2.2 Significant deviations from the latest approved application and/or plan

To what extent has the project been carried out as planned? Note that Norad generally permits adjustments to be made to original plans based on learning or changes in the context, provided that significant deviations (both positive and negative) that could have consequences for goal achievement are accounted for. See Article 2 of Part 2 of the Agreement (General Conditions).

2.3 Risks

Provide a brief update on the overall risk management of the project, including how risks have been identified, mitigated and responded to. Any major changes in the risk picture should be accounted for, together with an assessment of how such risks will be managed in the future.

Potential negative effects on cross-cutting issues (human rights, women's rights and gender equality, climate and environment, and anti-corruption) should always be accounted for. See Article 2 of Part 2 of the Agreement (General Conditions).

3. Evaluation/review

3.1 Evaluations and reviews

Were any evaluations or reviews of the project carried out during the reporting period? If so, briefly describe the key findings and attach the report(s) (if not already submitted/otherwise agreed).

4. Financial report and audit

4.1 Significant deviations from the latest approved budget

Comment on and justify significant deviations (both positive and negative) between actual costs (financial statements) and the latest approved budget. See Article 3 of Part 2 of the Agreement (General Conditions).

Comment on any modifications in the auditor's report.

5. Other reporting requirements

Check the agreement for any other reporting requirements. Provide an account as specified in the agreement. Sub-headings can be added if necessary.

5.1 Results achievement the Civil Society Support 

The overriding criteria for measuring results for the Civil Society Support are:  

• The number and type of local civil society actors in what number of countries have been reached? 
• The number of the local society actors that have been reached that have strengthened their capacity and ability to perform their role?

Distributed among country belonging, state the number of local civil society actors that have been reached through the cooperation so far in the agreement’s support period. State how many of these actors that have been strengthened.^[1] Add rows for countries as needed. The format is optional given that the categorisation is presented clearly.

 

Country	No. reached	No. strenghtened

 

Indicate what type(s) of local civil society actor this is.

[1] Local civil society actor: here seen as an established and registered actor in country(es) of implementation that the grant recipient has a sub-agreement/MoU with, such as NGOs, CSOs, independent media, religious organisations, trade unions, sports organisations etc. (and local country offices if they are a separate legal entity with independent board).