HOW TO WRITE A PROJECT PROPOSAL

Once the groundwork has been completed or an RFP (Request For Proposal), has been received, a proposal writing can commence. The key decision to be made at this stage is the structure of the project proposal (including the content and length). The structure is determined by the nature of the project as well as by the funding agency’s requirements. In the variety of formats, application forms, project design outlines, and grant application guidelines, it is possible to detect some common elements.

Proposed Format

Title page

A title page should appear on proposals longer than three to four pages. The title page should indicate the project title, the name of the lead organization (and potential partners, if any), the place and date of project preparation and the name of the donor agency to whom the proposal is addressed.

Project title

The project title should be short, concise, and preferably refer to a certain key project result or the leading project activity. Project titles that are too long or too general fail to give the reader an effective snapshot of what is inside.

Contents page

If the total project proposal is longer than 10 pages it is helpful to include a table of contents at the start or end of the document. The contents page enables readers to quickly find relevant parts of the document. It should contain the title and beginning page number of each section of the proposal.

Abstract

Many readers lack the time needed to read the whole project proposal. It is therefore useful to insert a short project summary — an abstract. The abstract should include:

• The problem statement;


• The project’s objectives;


• Implementing organizations;

• Key project activities; and


• The total project budget.

Theoretically, the abstract should be compiled after the relevant items already exist in their long form.

For a small project the abstract may not be longer than 10 lines. Bigger projects often provide abstracts as long as two pages.

Project Context

This part of the project describes the social, economic, political and cultural back- ground from which the project is initiated. It should contain relevant data from research carried out in the project planning phase or collected from other sources. The writer should take into consideration the need for a balance between the length of this item and the size of the overall project proposal. Large amounts of relevant data should be placed in an annex.

Project justification

Rationale should be provided for the project. Due to its importance usually this section is divided into four or more sub-sections.

Problem statement

The problem statement provides a description of the specific problem(s) the project is trying to solve, in order to “make a case” for the project. Furthermore, the project proposal should point out why a certain issue is a problem for the community or society as a whole, i.e. what negative implications affect the target group. There should also be an explanation of the needs of the target group that appear as a direct consequence of the described problem.

Priority needs

The needs of the target group that have arise, as a direct negative impact of the problem should be prioritized. An explanation as to how this decision was reached (i.e. what criteria was used) must also be included. For example, if the problem is stated as “... poor infrastructure in the community” the list of needs associated with this problem may be:

•   Improved water supply in quality and quantity; 


•   Better roads; and 


•   Improved solid waste collection. 


These three needs would then be given higher or lower priority according to the level of importance for the community, and a description would be given of how that decision was reached (e.g. a poll taken from the local population, costs associated with project intervention, etc.). This procedure provides credibility to the selected intervention. 


The proposed approach (type of intervention) 


The project proposal should describe the strategy chosen for solving the problem and precisely how it will lead to improvement. 
One way to describe the approach related to the need previously stated as improved water supply could be: “intervention to provide basic water supply facilities in the com- munity,” with some description of the specific features of the solution proposed. 


The implementing organization

This section should describe the capabilities of your organization by referring to its capacity and previous project record. Describe why exactly your organization is the most appropriate to run the project, its connection to the local community, the constituency behind the organization and what kind of expertise the organization can provide. If other partners are involved in implementation provide some information on their capacity as well.

Project aims

The first issue to deal with is naming the objectives. Several other English terms may be used including “project goal/aim,” “project purpose,” etc. Often one major “goal” is declared and then broken down into various objectives.

Once this issue has been dealt with, the hierarchy between objectives needs to be established, as well as how many levels the hierarchy should present. In reality, an organization should have already resolved this issue in the project-planning phase.

Project goal (or overall objective)

This is a general aim that should explain what the core problem is and why the     project is important, i.e. what the long-term benefits to the target group are.

Some examples of a project goal might be:

•   Raising environmental awareness; 


•   Improving the quality of life in the community; and 


•   Fostering social empowerment among women from deprived rural areas. 


Some rules for setting a project goal are shown below in italic. If it is difficult to follow these rules then the project itself may have to be redefined or reconsidered.

            Rules for
Setting a Project Goal

ü  There should be only one goal per project. 


ü  The goal should be connected to the vision for development. 


It is difficult or impossible to measure the accomplishment of the goal using measurable indicators, but it should be possible to prove its merit and    contribution to the vision.

Project objectives 


The objectives should address the core problem in terms of the benefits to be received by the project beneficiaries or target group as a direct result of the project as shown in Figure 6. The objectives from Figure 5 may be defined as: 


•   Improving the water supply in quantity X and quality Y for the population of village Z; and 


•   Reducing by X the rate of acute infections. 


Project objectives provide a more detailed breakdown of the project goal. A project will likely have multiple objectives. 


Project results

Results describe the services or products to be delivered to the intended beneficiaries. This is what the project management is promising to deliver. The results are more detailed than the objectives and the goal, and should be possible to measure through the use of objective indicators. Special consideration should therefore be paid to this area.

The results should address the main causes of the problem that the target group faces. To ensure relevant results, project management should have correctly identified the group’s needs.

Relating back to the previous example, the results would be written as: 


• Increased number of households connected to the water supply system; and

• Increased number of water taps in the village.

Target group

Define the target group and show how it will benefit from the project. The project should provide a detailed description of the size and characteristics of the target groups, and especially of direct project beneficiaries.

The criteria for target group analysis may be ethnic composition, gender, age, etc. When these analyses are more elaborate, they may be attached as an appendix.

Project implementation

The implementation plan should describe activities and resource allocation in as much detail as possible. It is exceptionally important to provide a good overview of who is going to implement the project’s activities, as well as when and where. The implementation plan may be divided into two key elements: the activity plan and the resource plan.

Activity plan (schedule)

The activity plan should include specific information and explanations of each of the planned project activities. The duration of the project should be clearly stated, with considerable detail on the beginning and the end of the project. Figure 7 breaks down the various steps involved in preparing an activity plan.

In general, two main formats are used to express the activity plan: a simple table and the Gantt chart.

A simple table with columns, as shown in Figure 8, for activities, sub-activities, tasks, timing and responsibility, is a clear, readily understandable format for the activity plan.

The Gantt Chart, a universal format for presenting activities in certain times frames, shows the dependence and sequence for each activity.

Resource plan

The resource plan should provide information on the means necessary to undertake the project. Cost categories are established at this stage in order to aggregate and summarize the cost information for budgeting.

Budget

In simple terms, a budget is an itemized summary of an organization’s expected income and expenses over a specified period of time.

Budgeting forms and financial planning procedures vary widely, especially in the non-profit sector. It is nevertheless essential that financial officers comply clearly and punctually with a funding organization’s budgeting and reporting requirements.

The two main elements of any budget are income and expenditures.

Income (sometimes referred to as revenue) is the amount of financial assets and in- kind contribution used as sources of support for the project. If the funding source is unique, the income side of the budget may not be shown. However, many projects have more than one source of support. The income side should show the share of contribution of each of these sources.

Expenditures (also called expenses or costs) are all the costs that are anticipated to occur during the project’s implementation. Regardless of the calculation and classification criteria used, the project costs should present a reasonable reflection of the activities presented in the project proposal.

A projection of the specific amounts of time needed at different phases of project implementation represents a basis for calculating the spending dynamics at different periods of the project.

Budget categories classify expenditures into smaller groups according to a certain criteria. This is to monitor spending and ensure compliance with the plan.

The two main costs are direct costs and operational costs. Direct costs are associated with a certain activity (e.g. organizing a workshop). Operational costs are related to internal activities of an organization and are considered fixed costs in the short term (e.g. staff salaries, rent, utilities, etc.).

Units, quantity per period and estimated unit costs are the three elements that are needed to calculate costs associated with any of these categories.

Monitoring and evaluation

The basis for monitoring is set when the indicators for results are set. The project proposal should indicate:

•   How and when the project management team will conduct activities to monitor the project’s progress; 


•   Which methods will be used to monitor and evaluate; and 


•   Who will do the evaluation? 


Reporting

The schedule of project progress and financial report could be set in the project proposal. Often these obligations are determined by the standard requirements of the donor agency. The project report may be compiled in different versions, with regard to the audience they are targeting.

Management and personnel

A brief description should be given of the project personnel, the individual roles each one has assumed, and the communication mechanisms that exist between them. All the additional information (such as CVs) should be attached to the annexes

Annexes

The annexes should include all the information that is important, but is too large to be included in the text of the proposal. This information can be created in the identification or planning phase of the project, but often it is produced separately. The usual documentation to be annexed to the project proposal is:

•   Analysis related to the general context (e.g. a civil society sector assessment); 


•   Policy documents and strategic papers (e.g. a local environmental action plan); 


•   Information on the implementing organizations (e.g. annual reports, success stories, brochures and other publications) 


•   Additional information on the project management structure and personnel (curriculum vitae for the members of the project team); 


•   Maps of the location of the target area; and 


•   Project management procedures and forms (organizational charts, forms, etc.) 


ASSIGNMENT:

You are required to prepare a project proposal to undertake a project. The project title is:

" To undertake an upgrading of a Shawl Boutique, exterior and interior of the  boutique in Bangsar South Area. You are allow to select an existing shop and turn into a Shawl Boutique. The Shawl Brand name is AKAR SCARF." AKAR SCARF has an existing online business and expanding to a Boutique outlet while having its online business."

Number words: 2,500 -3,000

Font :Arial

Size: 12

Spacing: 1.5

PRESENTATION

You are to select a project that will be launch in your real life. This presentation is a project presentation and you are required to present it to the key management of your company or to a project owner and project sponsor (This is a group presentation and group work but every member of the group must present).