Funding Guidelines

Our Purpose:

Within this vein, the Digicel Haiti Foundation was established in March 2007 with the primary objective of supporting and improving the communities in which our employees live and work, and where we do business.  We strive to ensure that communities are healthy, primarily through the support of Community based driven activities.  Ideally, these activities should embrace social, cultural and particularly educational objectives.

Digicel has taken steps toward building a legacy of commitment to improving the quality of life in Digicel communities and is positioning itself as an influential source of positive community change and enhancement.  It is projected that out of these steps will emerge, strengths and competencies that reflect community aspirations, while being consistent with Digicel values.

Our Work

Community

Employee involvement is potentially one of the most vibrant forms of corporate outreach.  With almost 1,000 employees, Digicel has tremendous promise for assisting communities through employees’ time, money, expertise and leadership.

It is our belief that educational reform must involve whole communities which are committed to development and growth.  This involves the changing of cultures of community members, leaders and employees alike.

We are particularly interested in Community programmes which:

• Embrace and reflect the educational, social and cultural aspirations of the community
• Address community needs
• Encourage volunteerism and civic engagement
• Promote opportunities for marginalized groups

The Foundation will have a special focus on two critical areas: Education and Sustainability

The focus on Education arises from a fundamental concern with strengthening formal schooling while concurrently supporting innovative educational strategies and reforms that address the needs of students with special emphasis on early childhood and primary education

By virtue of being involved in the information industry, Digicel recognizes that in order to succeed in this area, the company requires knowledgeable employees who can readily adapt to a constantly shifting work environment and more sophisticated consumers whose growing demand for products and service challenges us to do our best.  A Foundation devoted to improving education can add substantial value to a company that is dependent on effective education systems to produce both workers and future customers.

Sustainability of the project is of the utmost importance since the Foundation seeks to assist communities towards self sufficiency within a specified period, as opposed to the extension of continued assistance.

Basic Eligibility Criteria

1. Projects or organizations must serve the majority of people in the respective communities.
2. The organization must not be for profit.  Documentation may be requested in order to verify this status.
3. Organizations must have and display the leadership, management, experiences, to effectively carry out the proposed activities.
4. Proposals must support areas of Digicel focus, namely education, social or cultural through community action.
5. Proposal requests must contain all required information and documents.

Funding Limitations

In order to create community ownership and participation, the Foundation may place pre-determined limits, as a percentage of total costs, on funding to specific kinds of projects.  That is specific projects may be assisted with varying levels of assistance, relative to what must be invested by the community.  This investment may take the form of finance, capital or labour.

In General, Digicel Foundation does not provide funding for the following:

1. Individuals
2. Organizations and programmes designed to influence legislation or elected officials to public office
3. Sectarian or religious organizations whose services are limited to members of one religious group
4. Religious Programmes
5. Endowment funds, development campaigns, or funds directed toward deficit reduction or operating reserves.
6. Fundraising events or sponsorships (sports teams, advertising, fundraising dinners etc.)
7. Trips, conferences, seminars, festivals
8. Documentaries, videos or research projects/programmes
9. Private Foundations
10. Organisations that channel the funds received to third parties
11. Organisations formed to combat specific diseases &/or conduct medical research
12. Substance abuse treatment programmes
13. Programmes to alleviate homelessness

How to Apply for a Grant

External:

Before you begin:

1. Ensure your organization and proposal meet the general eligibility criteria and that the proposal is in line with the focus of the Foundation.  These may be reviewed on the Foundation web site
2. Complete a project budget
3. Provide cost estimates of the project including name of the suppliers
4. Ideally have access to a valid email address
5. Have access to, and submit a valid telephone number
6. Complete all sections on the Application for Funding Form.  Incomplete applications will not be processed

Once you have satisfied the foregoing, submit the proposal

Submission in hard copy should contain the signature of the applying officer of the organization together with:

Project Budget

Cost Estimate of Project

Quotation for equipment (if applicable)

Online Applications

After you have completed and submitted the online application, you will receive an e-mail notifying you that the proposal request has been received.  Hard copies with required signatures should be sent in support of on-line applications.  If submitted in hard copy, allow 14 days for response by post or courier.

The programme review may take up to three (3) months to complete.  Your organization will be contacted via e-mail, telephone or post if addition information or follow up is required.  A final decision will generally be made within six (6) months and the submitting organization will be contacted with the final decision

Should you receive a grant, it is mandatory that accurate records of all expenses and disbursement of funds be kept and submitted as required.  For this purpose, you will be required to open a bank account in the name of the Community Project and submit the information to the Foundation.  This will be used solely for the approved project and no other funds should be placed in this account.  Should there be any irregularities or disbursed funds are improperly used, the Foundation retains the right to cease all current and future disbursements.

Based on the specifics of each project, Foundation assistance may be done in lump sums or in traunches.

For the purpose of recognition, Digicel retains in tier sole discretion, the option to clearly brand any tangible assistance with the Digicel Foundation’s logo or applicable trademark.

Internal:

The Digicel Foundation will recognize and encourage the volunteer efforts of individual Digicel employees in their communities through the provision of funds/grants to community activities or through the matching of employee funds given to said programme.  The Foundation encourages teams to ten employees to spend a minimum of two hundred (200) cumulative hours on a community service education oriented project for a local non profit organization.  In recognition of their efforts, the Foundation will make a grant to the non-profit organization.

Similarly, once an employee volunteers and carries out at least forty (40) hours at a charitable institution, a grant will be made to that organization.  An employee may submit one such application per calendar year.

Where employees elect to make deductions to community based, accredited non-profit organizations, the Foundation, will match such funds, up to a pre-determined maximum per annum.

The foundation also strives to lead the way in developing compassion that no only connects with the overall corporate mission but also engages the interests and collaboration of employees, which in turn earns recognition in the community for the company