Sound Connects Fund 3rd Call For Applications

The SCF’s grant has the following requirements:

• The project length has to be up to eight months. Project implementation cannot exceed 8 months.
• The project budget has to be between €45 000 and €70 000.
• The project implementation and final reporting must take place between April 2023 and end of November 2023

• To be eligible for financial support, applicants must be formally registered in the local country,  for example as an NGO/NPO, association, close corporation, private company, etc.
• For clarity, the basis is that the applicant must be an officially/legally registered entity in its local country. The word "organisation" is used as a broader term to refer to any business entity such as a company, an institution, association, etc. The list may include (non-exhaustive); arts organisations, arts venues, festivals, creative hubs and incubators, media houses, mobility circuits, recording studios, theatres, arts markets, fairs and conferences, creative sector businesses, etc.
• The organisation must have a proven history of operating in the creative sector in Southern Africa.
• The organisation must have been in operation for at least three years on the day of application.
• The organisation must be registered and operating in any of the following eligible countries:
  • Angola
  • Botswana
  • eSwatini
  • Lesotho
  • Malawi
  • Mozambique
  • Namibia
  • Zambia
  • Zimbabwe
• Similarly, the planned action must take place in the eligible countries only.
• The organisation must have directly implemented at least one project in the cultural and creative sector, for at least 50% of the amount of the grant requested.
• An organisation may only be awarded a SCF grant once. Thus beneficiaries of a SCF grant  may not apply again. Previous beneficiaries are welcome to collaborate with other grantee projects on the condition that there is no financial gain.
• An organisation can partner or collaborate with another organisation from a non-eligible country provided that there is no financial benefit to the organisation from the non-eligible country that is derived directly from the awarded SCF grant.
• One of the key goals of the fund is to offer a robust capacity building programme to grantees. Grantees should therefore be willing to actively participate in this programme which will broadly include accessing learning initiatives, virtually and where possible face-to-face (travel).

• All applicants shall be required to indicate their key training needs or leaning interests.

• The premise of this call is that the action must take place in the eligible country(s) and it must be clear in the proposal and implementation that the beneficiaries of the action are based in an eligible country. Projects that include participation of beneficiaries  in activities outside the eligible country (e.g. conferences, markets, festivals, etc.) will remain eligible on the condition that there is a clear demonstration of how such an action benefits the eligible country(s).

• Download the Grant Pack for full information which includes the Sound Connects Fund Grant Application Guide, the SCF Grant Application form, SCF Grant Budget Template (Annexure 1), SCF Legal Identity Form (Annexure 2), SCF Financial Identification Form (Annexure 3), Declaration of Honour Form (Annexure 4) and the Common Mistakes Made by Applicants Booklet.
• Read the Grant Application guide carefully, fill in all required application documents and collect all required supporting documents.
• Go to the official SCF Grant Application Submission Form, complete the brief Key-Information Section and attach your application form and budget documents as well as all the required supporting documents. Once you have submitted your application, a confirmation of receipt message will be sent to your specified email address.
• Important Note: The SCF Grant Application Submission Form does not allow applicants to save their applications and complete them later. Before applicants start any work on the submission platform, it is advised that they must first complete the official SCF Grant Application form and annexures and collect all the required supporting documents.
• Applicants from Angola and Mozambique (only) may apply in Portuguese if they so wish. To download the Portuguese application form and Portuguese annexures, go to www.musicinafrica.net/scf and click on the “Portuguese Application Pack” tab.
• The third call for proposals closes at midnight on 31 January 2023. No late submissions will be accepted.
• The results of the adjudication will be published within sixty (60) working days after closing date.
• All successful applicants shall be notified in writing prior to the results being publicised.
• Unsuccessful applicants shall be notified via email with a copy of the Common Mistakes Booklet attached. Individualized feedback for unsuccessful applications will NOT be provided. Once communication has been sent to unsuccessful applicants, no further correspondence will be entered into by the Sound Connects Fund team or any of the project partners.

The following will lead to automatic disqualification:

• Applicants who do not meet the eligibility criteria as stated in these guidelines.
• Projects that will be implemented outside the eligible countries as specified in these guidelines.
• Provision of dishonest and inaccurate information.
• Incomplete submission of application forms, proposal and/or compliance documentation.
• Submission of applications that do not adhere to the format and guidelines established.
• Late submission of any and all documentation.
• Applications sent directly via email and not through the application submission online form.
• Applications with budgets that fall outside the stated threshold.

Grant evaluation committee

Applications will be adjudicated and awarded by the SCF Evaluation Committee appointed by the MIAF Board. The evaluation committee will be comprised of representatives from the Sound Connects Fund project management team and external experts as follows;

• Music In Africa Foundation representative (1)
• Goethe-Institut South Africa representative (1)
• External members (5)

The Jury has the option to co-opt one expert to balance the language support requirements and provide additional capacity for the grant Jury, where needed.

Preliminary and eligibility review

1. This is a preliminary review where all eligible projects are prepared for evaluation at project team level.
2. All ineligible applications are also identified and automatically disqualified. It is important that you read the guidelines carefully and supply all the required documents in your application.

Evaluation criteria and guidelines

• Eligible applications are submitted to the evaluation committee and scored against the criteria outlined in the guidelines. The committee also receives all copies of ineligible applications for verification.
• A scoring mechanism shall be used to inform the selection process. Broadly, this process will consider the following;
• Quality and relevance of the solution with reference to the objectives outlined in the call for proposals, as well as the challenges identified in your proposal.
• Sustainability of the proposed action.
• Potential reach and impact.
• Presentation, logic and clarity of the proposal.
• Cost, value and financial model
• Consideration will also include aspects of innovation, originality and inclusiveness e.g. with regards to underrepresented groups.

The compulsory application documents that must be filled out by applicants are:

• SCF Grant Application Form
• SCF Grant Budget Template (Annexure 1)
• SCF Legal Identity Form (Annexure 2)
• SCF Financial Identification Form (Annexure 3)
• Declaration of Honour Form (Annexure 4)

Additional compulsory documents that must be supplied by the applicant with the application are:

• Proof of company/organisation registration 
• Tax clearance (this refers to official documentation which confirms that the applicant’s tax status is in good standing. The documentation must be issued by the relevant local tax authority.)
• Latest stamped or audited Financial Statements (not older than previous two years)
• Company Profile with HR Structure
• Document with examples of a project/s delivered by the organisation in the creative and cultural sector in the last 2 years. (i.e., project reports, links to project websites, etc.)
• Two (2) reference letters from previous funders or clients.
• Proof of previous grants (such as project reports, award letter, etc) that the applicant has directly implemented, at least one project in the cultural and creative sector, for at least 50% of the amount of the grant requested.