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The British Embassy in Lima is seeking bids for a project that would bring together decentralized voices from civil society to discuss challenges to democratic governance and sustainable development in Peru, putting forward a consensus public agenda. Results from the project should inform partner interventions and policymaking and strengthen the UK’s reputation as an ally to democratic governance in Peru.

1. Background

The UK is a global promoter of democratic governance and the rule of law. As such, the British Embassy in Lima is committed to working with like-minded partners to strengthen democracy and resilience. We seek to on building an inclusive, democratic and open society by, inter alia, advancing our shared values of democratic governance and rule of law.

The past two decades have seen democratic backsliding and political polarization on the rise across the globe. According to UNDP (2023), Latin America and the Caribbean is the region where political polarization has increased the most in the past twenty years. In the region, Peru stands out as a particularly complex case that has faced constant governance crises over the past years. Many of these crises are historically rooted and overcoming them will require significant citizen participation.

In 2023, Peruvians were the least satisfied with democracy in all Latin America, scoring 8% satisfaction rate (Latinobarómetro, 2023). Trust in political institutions is low. Besides the tendency to high levels of disapproval of the Government and Congress, 92.9% of people do not trust political parties (INEI, 2023) and only 33% of Peruvians say they trust in elections (LAPOP, 2021).

Across the region/In the past years, valuable efforts have been made to rebuild democratic governance, civic participation, and public trust. However, efforts have had difficulties in adopting a decentralised approach and bringing together diverse stakeholders. As such, the British Embassy would like to support a project that brings together a multitude of actors in civic dialogue to set a consensus agenda to strengthen democratic governance and sustainable development in the country. We are especially interested in supporting decentralized projects that centre local actors outside of Lima to create an agenda with proposals to be included in the debates in the upcoming elections in Peru. This falls in line with Priority Theme 2 (Democracy) of our country Human Rights and Gender Equality Strategy 2023-2025.

2. Objective and scope of work

The objective of the work is to support the UK’s commitment to strong democracies, public participation, and rule of law. Projects should adopt a decentralized approach, with clear spaces for dialogue between local civil society actors, academia, public organizations and youth with other key actors. Successful bidders will demonstrate a creative, impactful approach to ensure the creation of a citizen’s public agenda.

Bids should look to demonstrate their ability to deliver a project that includes:

a) Consensus building

• We expect projects to create a space for inclusive dialogue between a diverse set of actors, including civil society organizations, academia, private sector and youth groups. * We especially look for bids that would centre local and grassroots organizations. Dialogue spaces should seek to find consensus around the key challenges for democratic governance and sustainable development in Peru, to put forth a consensus citizen agenda for public debate and build a network of interested stakeholders.

b) Sharing out results

• Projects should collate and systematize the shared agenda that arises in dialogue spaces to maintain a record that can be introduced into the public agenda.
• After results have been compiled, projects should aim to disseminate results through multimedia communication products. We especially look for bids that can work with local media to that end.

c) Stakeholder participation

• Projects should involve a quite large list of different relevant stakeholders from all the sectors: private, public, academia, local organizations, NGOs, unions, etc. to be able to collate and give voice to all underrepresented groups and create an inclusive space of dialogue.
• Include amongst the list of participants political leaders, especially looking ahead of the upcoming election in 2026.

3. Project Budget

Project proposals of up to £17,000 = S/77, 860 / $20,400. We are looking for projects that can begin in November 2024 and be completed by February 2025. Implementers should spend 100% of their allocation by February 2025.

4.  Assessment

Bids will be assessed against the following criteria:

• strategic fit – alignment with stated objectives and scope of work expected.
• project viability – including a realistic description of methodology and activities to deliver the outcome and deliverables (outputs) within the project duration and sustainability after the project ends.
• stakeholder management – including the capacity of the implementing organisation to engage with key stakeholders, including diverse business, government and civil society stakeholders present in Peru, and involve local/international expertise to deliver expected outcomes.
• project design – including clear achievable objectives and outputs
• value for money
• risk management
• experience and understanding of the current mining and human rights context in Peru.

5. How to Bid

Please complete the attached “Project Proposal Form” and “Activity Based Budget” using the guidance provided.

Completed forms should be sent in standard document and spreadsheet formats in English or Spanish to BEProjectsPeru@fcdo.gov.uk by 11:59pm October 20th, with “Call for bids Citizen Dialogue” in the subject line of your email.

Bids submitted after this date will not be considered. Bids can be submitted at any time up to the indicated deadline.

Bidders will be notified via email of the outcome of assessments in early October. Due to the volume of bids expected, we will not be able to provide feedback on unsuccessful bids.

Organisations can submit up to a maximum of 1 proposal; bids for projects that include engagement with stakeholders in the outside of Lima region are particularly welcome.

Please also familiarise yourself at an early stage with the standard ‘Grant Agreement Template’ attached.

6. What to Include in the Bid Form?

• Overview of project or activity. How it fits with the UK’s approach to the relevant priority; and why the UK should fund the project or activity.
• How the project or activity will create an impact and lead to change.
• Rationale– including why the project or activity should take place now.
• Where relevant, evidence of support from Peruvian government actors for the project or activity and that it complements their own strategy.
• Information about how the impact will be sustained after the project or activity has been completed.

Proposals must be submitted on the authorised forms and include an activity-based budget (ABB) in soles/US dollars. Value for money is an important selection criterion and if you do not submit a detailed ABB then your proposal will not be considered. 

7. Key documents

• Proposal Form for Activities / Projects between £10,000 and £80,000Template Project Proposal Form above 10k (ODT, 78.3 KB)
• Activity Based Budget (ABB) Template_Activity Based Budget (ODS, 10.2 KB)
• Value for money and budgeting guidance Template Accountable Grant Low Value Arrangement (ODT, 96.2 KB)
• Model Grant Agreement Value for money and budgeting guidance (ODT, 13.8 KB)

8. Contacts

Please contact BEProjectsPeru@fcdo.gov.uk with any questions or queries.