NZAID Tools Specific Funds 

HOMF | Head of Mission Funds Guidelines

Proposals Eligible for Funding

NZAID’s goal is a safe and just world free of poverty and the agency’s mission is eliminating poverty through development partnerships;  (see the NZAID Policy Statement - Towards a Safe and Just World Free of Poverty, July 2002). 

The purpose of HOMF is to enable New Zealand posts, consistent with their diplomacy objectives, to flexibly support activities which manifestly and directly meet development needs in recipient countries.

Proposed activities should be assessed on their individual merits consistent with the overall goal for HOMF.

All proposals should cover, at a level of detail appropriate to the size and complexity of the project;

  • key stakeholders of the project (including the target beneficiaries);
  • the consultative process undertaken to develop the project plan;
  • the project’s objectives;
  • project inputs, outputs and outcomes sought;
  • an implementation plan;
  • possible risks to the project and how they will be managed;
  • a detailed budget; and
  • details of financial/labour/in kind contributions from the applicants.

Since the final decision on funding lies with the HOM, NZAID is not prescriptive on precisely what should or should not be funded. However, Both AIDGLO and AIDPAC have clear principles that should be applied in the selection of proposals.


AIDGLO | including for Posts managed by MFAT

  1. For HOMFs covered by NZAID bilateral or regional programmes, i.e. the 7 core bilaterals, China, Latin America, Africa Regional, the proposals selected should complement and support the thematic, sectoral and geographic objectives and priorities of the relevant bilateral or regional programme. This is not intended to be an inflexible rule and where it is sensible funds may be allocated in a carefully judged manner to activities that fall outside the programme strategy.
  2. For other HOMFs (to be transferred to and managed by MFAT) it is expected proposals should, wherever possible, support NZAIDs government mandated principles with regard to poverty, human rights, good governance, gender equity, environmental sustainability, and participation.
  3. It would be acceptable for the posts covered by 1 and 2 above, in specific circumstances to support more than one activity proposed by a specific agency.
  4. No individual activity should be supported for more than two years, but it might be appropriate to support different activities proposed by the same NGO or other partner over a longer duration to facilitate effective HOMF management and monitoring and evaluation, especially, but not exclusively, in countries without a resident NZ presence.

AIDPAC

  1. In the Pacific the HOMF fulfils a rather different role than in non-Pacific countries. This is largely (but not solely) due to the fact that, excluding Micronesia and the French Pacific territories, NZAID has substantial bilateral and regional aid programmes.
  2. AIDPAC has clear strategies and objectives for its aid programmes with its partner countries and it is important that HOMF allocations support these programme strategies.
  3. HOMs need to be alert to possible incoherence between the core aid programmes and approaches in their choice of proposals and refer to NZAID where they feel such a conflict may exist; (e.g. where sector support or a sector-wide approach (SWAp) exists, no HOMF projects should be supported in that sector without specific agreement from Wellington).  
  4. HOMF funding does not need to be limited to programme strategy foci but should be linked to important development needs.

Posts may find it of value to establish their own specific criteria, in addition to these guidelines, for proposal eligibility and detail them in their individual HOMF guidelines and application procedures.

Whether post-specific criteria are established or not, approved proposals should support the general NZAID principles outlined above and avoid clearly controversial areas, such as support for:

  • political, religious or evangelical activities
  • unsolicited donations
  • individual student scholarships
  • individually owned businesses
  • international airfares/overseas conference attendance
  • on-going (recurrent) funding of recipients’ operational/organisational costs such as wages and salaries, office items and communications
  • repeat funding of the same activities, which would not preclude the same organisation receiving funding, but such funding would have to be for a new activity or programme

Post-developed guidelines will need to be approved by the HOM, dated and filed for audit purposes.