RFP Version: 1 May 2021

Application Guidelines

Hej! You are about to prepare a proposal to the IKEA Foundation. We recently
updated our systems, making it possible for you to apply using whatever format
works best for you. The following general guidelines will help you prepare your
application.

IKEA Foundation grant-making is structured around 6 portfolios1: Your application

will fall under the employment and Entrepreneurship portfolio.
 Agricultural Livelihoods
 Employment and Entrepreneurship
 Renewable Energy
 Climate Action, and
 Special Initiatives
 Refugees Livelihoods
Here is some basic information we require on the cover page of the
proposal.
PARTNER INFORMATION*
 Organisation's name/s (incase of a collaboration)
 Key contacts relating to the application. These include your organization’s CEO; the
Primary Contact (direct oversight of the grant); the Contract Signatory; and personnel
responsible for Monitoring & Evaluation and Communications.
PROJECT SUMMARY
 Project Title
 Two line summary of your request
GEOGRAPHIC FOCUS
 Please indicate in which country, region your project will be implemented, if possible
you can be specific about the sub-national/regional level geographic level.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

 Please give us an indication of your key outcomes

and KPIs

BUDGET
 Let us know the total project cost and how much you are requesting from us and
whether you expect additional funding from others. Please Use Annex 3 ‘Full Budget
Guideline for Grant Application 2020.pdf’ and Annex 4 ‘IKEA Foundation Detailed
Budget Excel Template.xlsx' to submit a full detailed budget.

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The Program Manager (PM) who solicited your proposal will send by email more specific guidance
about the approach and aims of the portfolio you are applying to, including its Theory of Change.

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RFP Version: 1 May 2021

Please provide all the remaining information in a format of your choosing

but not exceeding 10 pages including any annexes. Below are the topics we
would like you to cover:

1. Summary of the Proposal

2. Mission and vision behind the work for which you are seeking support

3. Theory of Change:2
i. A diagram of your theory of change;

ii. A narrative describing your theory of change, including

a. its strategic fit to the IKEA Foundation portfolio which has invited
your application;
b. background and context, including the specific problems/barriers you
would address through this grant support;
c. assumptions;
d. a summary of the evidence base and its strength in support of your
ToC.3

4. Interventions and activities:

Please describe interventions and activities in terms of:
i. what, where, how, who, and for whom the interventions are designed;
ii. key personnel (current and new staff) and the level of effort sub-
contractors or sub-grantees will contribute as part of this support. A
visual organogram along with a narrative are much appreciated.
iii. your intended exit strategy, including when it goes into effect and what
indicators you will apply to assess the durability of the intervention and
activities when IKEA Foundation funding ends.

5. Key Performance Indicators:

Please propose three key performance indicators (KPIs) that you will track
and report to the Foundation on an annual basis. If your application is
successful The Foundation's MLE team, will discussion your proposed
indicators to ensure alignment and measurebility.

2Theoriesof Change (ToC) are the ideas and hypotheses people and organisations have about how
change happens. A practical guide to developing a theory of change is available
here: https://knowledge.hivos.org/theory-change-guidelines Be sure to indicate whether you are
providing a ToC for a proposed project or your entire organization.
3 The summary should include both published studies and a description of evidence generated by
the organization. For information on assessing the strength of the evidence base, see Part 3 of
this How to Note:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file
/291982/HTN-strength-evidence-march2014.pdf

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6. Evaluation:
The foundation plans to conduct a rigorous evaluation of your interventions to
assess their cost-effectiveness and causal linkage to impact. Please let us
know if there other aspects of the programme you would like to evaluate.
Additionally, give us an idea of an organisation you would approach for this
form of evaluation. Successful applicant with recieve targeted tecnical
assistance and financial support from the The IKEA Foundation to conduct and
separately fund an independent evaluation.

7. Risk assessment and risk mitigation:

List the key risks you’ve identified for this project; propose what actions you
will take to minimize those risks; and explain what factors fall outside your
control even after you’ve taken measures. Let’s be clear that we are not asking
for you to name hypothetical or exogenous risks (i.e., political regime change,
economic recession) but project risks that will genuinely hamper the
implementation of the project and the achievement of results. For each risk
you name, please indicate its likelihood of happening and whether its impact
will be minor, moderate or significant.

8. Budget narrative: Please provide a narrative that helps explain any line item in
your budget that is not immediately clear.

Simplicity is one of our organizational values, so please be as succinct as possible. On

any of the topics above, you are welcome to include links to additional materials.

Questions? Please ask! We take an iterative approach and are here to help you.

This concludes the general guidance. Feel free to email us questions and any
request for further information at greenenterprisefacility@ikeafoundation.org.

Lycka till! (Good luck in Swedish)