The
Ramsar Convention on Wetlands The
Ramsar Convention on Wetlands The Ramsar Convention's Small Grants Fund
Ramsar Small Grants Fund for Wetland Conservation and Wise Use (SGF)
The
Ramsar Small Grants Fund was established
by Ramsar COP4 in 1990 as a mechanism to assist developing countries and those
with economies in transition in implementing the Convention and to enable the
conservation and wise use of wetland resources - since that time, it has provided
funding and co-funding, up to 40,000 Swiss francs (about US$ 32,000) per project,
for something like 198 projects in about 87 countries, totaling about 7.5 million
francs.
Suitable project proposals are those which contribute to the implementation of the Convention's Strategic Plan 2003-2008 for the conservation and wise use of wetlands; provide emergency assistance for Ramsar sites; or provide 'preparatory assistance' to allow non-Contracting Parties to progress toward accession. Eligibility is restricted to countries on the List of Aid Recipients established by the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), effectively meaning developing countries and countries with economies in transition. Projects may be proposed and implemented by any agency, NGO, or individual, but proposals MUST be endorsed and monitored by the Administrative Authority (the Ramsar implementing agency) in the Party's government, and seldom is more than one proposal approved from the same Party in any year. Successful proposals receive 80% of the allocated funds upon signature of the contract and the remainder upon submission of an adequate final report, but countries from which adequate final project reports have not been received may be denied further consideration for funding until those outstanding project dossiers have been closed.
Projects for the 2007 cycle will be selected by the Standing Committee in February 2008. The call for proposals is now being made for the 2008 cycle, with a deadline of 30 June 2008 for application and with a decision by the Standing Committee around the end of the year. The current edition of the "SGF Operational Guidelines", which includes complete information and the required forms, is now available on the Ramsar Web site in Word and PDF formats, as well as directly from the Secretariat.
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The
Secretariat's regional teams also offer an advisory
service to help with the preparation of suitable proposals, for
which drafts should be submitted to the Senior Regional Advisors by
30 April 2008. Please note that our advice is intended to help
to improve project proposals for re-submission to the Small Grants Fund
process, but it is not a guarantee that the proposals will be approved
by the Standing Committee when it makes its decisions.
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Readers can also find below lists of the successful project proposals for each year since 1992 and news reports of successfully completed projects, which may provide useful tips as to the kinds of projects and approaches most often selected for assistance.
The deadline for applications for the next round is 30 June 2008.
The deadline for submissions of draft proposals for the SGF advisory service is 30 April 2008.
All of the required forms for applying to the Small Grants Fund are included in the Operational Guidelines.
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[Note: Project applicants from the Neotropical Region may also wish to consider
Ramsar's Wetlands for the Future Programme.]
Ramsar Small Grants Fund Allocations Reports
The Allocations Reports contain one-paragraph descriptions of each of the projects approved for each year's funding cycle.
Summary list of SGF projects funded, 1991-2000
[Note: these are occasional SGF news items as they have come to hand, not a thorough survey of completed projects.]
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For
further information about the Ramsar Convention or the Small Grants Fund, please
contact: the Ramsar Convention Secretariat, rue Mauverney 28, CH-1196
Gland, Switzerland (tel. +41 22/999 0170, fax +41 22/999 0169, e-mail 
).
Posted 5 March 1998, updated 31 March 2008, Dwight Peck.
