Grants for individual projects, grants for small businesses, and grants for NGOs in Cameroon
There is a general need for funding for NGO projects, small business projects, and individual projects in Cameroon.
Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in Cameroon, for example, are more and more, having their job cut out for them. Cameroon is increasingly in need of some public services that the State fails to provide. Non Governmental Organisations in Cameroon have risen to the challenge to provide some of these basic public services.
These NGOs sometimes charge nothing for their services, or at best, they do not make any profit, hence, they are also referred to as Non-profit organisations (NPO). The question that begs an answer is how do these NGOs survive without making money directly from their services? How do NGOs get funding that keeps them operating?
The short answer is that they are funded through grants. The long answer is… this article.
In this article, we will look into grants, who gives them, to whom are they given, how do you qualify for grants, how do you use the grant money, do you repay this money, and other related questions that people frequently ask concerning grants in Cameroon. Finally, we will discuss how to get grants for ngos in Cameroon, grants for individual projects and grants for small businesses in Cameroon.
What is a grant
According to Wikipedia, “A grant is a fund given by an entity – often a public body, charitable foundation, or a specialized grant-making institution – to an individual or another entity (usually, a non-profit organisation, sometimes a business or a local government body) for a specific purpose linked to public benefit.”
What types of grants
Grants could be seen and categorized under many headings. One can categorize them under who gives them, under who it is given to, under the purpose of the grant, etc. In the scope of this article, we will look at types of grants as it applies to the purpose of the grant.
Grants for personal development
There are grants available for Cameroonians that are for personal development. This is mostly in the field of education, to help the individual acquire some education of some sort. Many, if not all, scholarships are grants of some sort.
Startup grants
This type of grant is given to individuals or small startups which are still in the idea stage or in the seed stage. These grants are to help individuals, small businesses, or startups to get started with their profitable projects.
Grants for NGOs
These grants are given to NGOs to help them run some public service, environmental, or humanitarian goal they are engaged in.
Who funds grants in Cameroon?
Grants are mostly funded by big Non-Governmental Organisations, big charity organisations, big multinational companies, foundations, and governments.
Is grant free money?
Not at all. A grant is not free money. Grants are given for a particular purpose. When you are given a grant, it is like you undertake to use the money to only fulfill the purpose for which it was given and nothing else. You cannot use grant money any way you like. It is not celebration or party money.
Do you repay grants?
Yes and no. There are some grants in Cameroon that do require you to repay it, for example, the Government grants given to young Cameroonians under the Pajet-U project. Under this project, the grants are meant to be repaid. Failure to repay them, the surety of the grantee is held responsible.
Likewise, there are also grants in Cameroon that are not meant to be repaid. An example is the Tony Elumelu Foundation grant given to African youths (Cameroon included). Here, a sum of $5000 dollars is given as seed money for young projects to kick off.
grants for ngos in Cameroon
Who qualifies for a grant in Cameroon?
As already mentioned above, there are different types of grants with requirements that allow different types of persons to qualify. There are grants that individuals qualify for, grants for NGOs only, grants for small businesses, etc. It all depends on the description that accompanies the grant.
Are grants hard to get?
Everything good does not come by easy. Judge from this analogy to know how easy it is to get a grant.
Some grants are money given to be refunded without interest rates.
Other grants are given not to be refunded.
Grants are what most NGOs need to survive.
There are few grant funders and so many projects needing the funds.
NGOs keep a whole team in charge of and experts in writing grant applications.
Writing grant applications is a whole career path that few people have chosen.
Grants are mostly given to NGOs which already have a track record in implementing grants.
Most individuals, small businesses, and NGOs who get grants applied through the use or help of an expert in writing grant applications.
From these lines of facts, you can see that getting a grant is not by chance.
How to get grants for individual projects in Cameroon
- Think up a project you are passionate about carrying out, e.g. poultry
- Acquire knowledge in the scope of the project. For example, if you have learned all about running poultry and the market for poultry.
- Put your project on paper. Write a business plan on how you intend to use the money you seek to run a sustainable poultry business
- Learn how to write a grant application
- Look for grant funders. Look for announcements for bodies that are funding individual projects
- Write a grant application to as many as you can and attach your business plan to and send it to the grant funder body
- If your grant application is chosen to be funded, you will be contacted with further details on how the process will all go
How to get grants for NGOs in Cameroon
- Love humanity and choose a cause where you want to serve humanity
- Look for people who are also passionate like you in serving humanity in the chosen cause
- Register an NGO to serve under the chosen cause
- Get the NGO a physical as well as an online presence
- Look for grant writers to help write grant applications to grant funders
- Look for grant funders who are funding your chosen cause
- Get your grant writers to apply for as many of such grants as they possibly can
- If your grant application is selected to be funded, you will be contacted with further details
- Look for a project coordinator who will help you execute the project you have received a grant to fund
- Execute the project as best as your organisation can have another chance at winning other upcoming grants from the grant funder or related grant funders
How to get grants for startups or small businesses in Cameroon
- Figure out a problem faced in Cameroon and devise an innovative or less costly way to solve the problem
- Look for friends who can help you in this your new idea and you all form a team
- Register the small business or the startup
- Start implementing the solution on as small a scale as you possibly can
- Look for grant funders who are funding for your type of business or startup
- Seek the help of a professional grant writer to apply for as many of such grants as you can afford
- If your grant application is selected for funding, the grant funders will contact you with details on the next steps you will have to take
- Take the grant money and use it wisely to give a solid foundation for your business or startup
- Do not start eating profits, invest them back into the business to spur your growth.