4. Fund Mobilisation

CARE’s ability to respond to an emergency is directly linked to its ability to raise funds. Efforts should be made as quickly as possible to raise an amount of funds proportionate to the humanitarian response required. In most cases, there will be significantly less available funds than the level of humanitarian need, so CARE should pursue all possible funding sources to bridge the gap between funding and humanitarian needs. In other very large or high-profile cases, however, as seen in the South-East Asian tsunami, there may be an oversupply of funds. CARE should always develop a careful strategy to ensure that the level of funds accepted is consistent with an accountable and proportionate response to the humanitarian needs, and that there is sufficient flexibility in appeals to allow reprogramming as the situation may require. The CCG will agree the fundraising target on an early call with the CO.

Checklist

• Activate CARE International fundraising mechanisms within 24-48 hours of the emergency by sending the emergency alert and key fundraising tools to the Lead Member and CEG.
• Establish fundraising targets (on the CCG) that are proportionate to the level of need, and which prioritise funding amounts by response phase and key sectors.
• Issue an initial appeal and response strategy as soon as possible, followed by project concepts and proposals.
• Develop a fundraising strategy that considers all possible options including institutional donors (bilateral, multilateral and UN) and private donors (institutions, appeals, etc.).
• Clearly track the status of the funding pipeline to monitor progress against fundraising targets (CEG will support initially)
• Activate CARE International’s ERF (emergency response fund) to initiate rapid assessment and response operations.  Agreement made on early CCG.
• Maximise funding from CARE’s traditional institutional donors by establishing good relationships with the relevant CARE Member at headquarters level, being well informed about funding opportunities and processes, and maintaining good donor relationships at the field level.
• Seek potential funding from new donors who may be active in the country that CARE does not already have a bilateral relationship with.
• Participate actively in UN coordination mechanisms, in particular clusters, to establish partnerships with key UN implementing agencies and to access UN funding mechanisms.
• Provide materials to CI for private fundraising-including dollar handles, pictures, human interest stories and proposals-as soon as possible.
• Establish coordination with relevant fundraising networks in CARE International.
• Maximise cost recovery by building all relevant costs into budgets and ensuring donors allow backdating to the start of the emergency.
• Put in place effective donor contract management, and financial management and reporting systems, for all emergency funds secured.

Speed is essential with fundraising, particularly in rapid-onset emergencies (for example, earthquakes and floods). Key emergency institutional donors will allocate initial emergency funds within the first 24-48 hours of the emergency. Similarly, the success of private fundraising, including appeals, depends on CARE’s ability to get its message out within 24-48 hours of the emergency.

Note!

Many parts of CARE around the world will be involved in fundraising for an emergency response. To maximise fundraising opportunities, fundraisers in CARE must be alerted to the need to raise funds for the emergency and be provided with critical fundraising needs immediately.

Once an emergency has been declared, COs may apply to access the CI ERF. This fund is available to support the rapid start of a response and early assessment.   In order to support sustainability of the ERF, funds should be recovered when donor contracts are secured. Although this is not mandatory it is highly encouraged (see section 8). Do not treat the CI ERF like another grant which you are compelled to spend.

While CARE’s Emergency Response Fund recognises the need to invest funds when initiating an emergency response, it is CARE’s policy to aim to recover all emergency-related costs as far as possible. This includes initial assessment and response funds, preparedness costs, all emergency personnel, and equipment costs-in addition to normal, CO and CARE Member recoveries.

All funds secured by CARE for the response must be managed effectively and accountably in accordance with the grant or contract conditions.

For detailed guidelines, see Chapter – Donor contract management, and Chapter – Finance