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Background information:

Theme 

Fighting Corruption in Ghana through an enabling policy and regulatory framework. 

Eligible organisations

Registered Ghanaian civil society organisations (CSOs) operating at national levels and actively engaged in policy influencing processes. These include:

• Academic and research institutions;
• Professional associations;
• Research and advocacy NGOs;
• Think tanks;
• Private sector associations;
• Civil society networks, coalitions, alliances and platforms.

Eligible organisations must demonstrate capacity to mobilize citizens and citizen groups and forge alliances of relevant stakeholders for long-term engagement and collective action in the fight against corruption.

NB: Organisations currently receiving grants from STAR-Ghana under the GESI and Media calls are not eligible to apply as lead organisations for this grant.

About STAR-Ghana

STAR-Ghana is a five-year (2015 – 2020) voice and empowerment programme supported by UK Aid, the European Union and DANIDA.  Its purpose is to support the development of a civil society and citizenry capable of influencing change which will lead to inclusive access to high quality and responsive service delivery in Ghana. Its strategic approach is focused on supporting the creation, utilisation and institutionalisation of spaces for collective engagement, within civil society and between civil society and other actors, as a means of increasing the accountability and responsiveness of the executive and key state institutions at both local and national levels and promoting inclusive national development.

The anti-corruption call

National corruption surveys in recent years point to a significant deterioration in citizens’ perceptions of corruption in Ghana. Overall trends are negative and petty corruption has worsened particularly for citizens seeking to access public goods and services. Public perceptions also reflect a growing awareness of, and concern about, corruption across key sectors of government. Tackling corruption is essential if Ghana is to achieve sustainable and equitable growth. Corruption is a brake on development, burdens the poor and exacerbates inequality. The resulting lack of trust in public officials, institutions, and processes weakens the state-citizen relationship and undermines democracy.

As part of its approach of convening and catalysing citizens’ actions around key national issues, STAR-Ghana is implementing a workstream aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of citizens’ actions against corruption. This will be done through the provision of grants and technical support to civil society organisations, including private sector associations and the media, and brokering relationships between and among key stakeholders. The workstream will complement the work of ‘sister’ programmes such as STAAC, ARAP and GOGIG, support the implementation of the NACAP and strengthen spaces for civil society engagement with key institutions such as Parliament, CHRAJ and the Judiciary.

To this end, STAR-Ghana intends to award grants to a limited number of national level CSOs and CSO coalitions to develop and implement projects and initiatives aimed at helping to address the systemic causes of corruption in Ghana. Applications are therefore invited proposals from eligible civil society organisations, including media organisations, professional associations and private sector associations, to develop and implement projects under the strategic policy influencing component of the Anti-Corruption Workstream. Such proposals should focus on strategic level policy influencing on anti-corruption issues, be anchored on the National Anti-corruption Action plan (NACAP) and, as much as possible, take account of gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) considerations.

Applicants are particularly encouraged to consider issues and strategies such as: 

• Addressing high-risk, high-value, high-impact sectors;
• Making more effective use of Ghana’s commitments and obligations under existing international and regional anticorruption instruments;
• Seeking to mainstream results and lessons into public law- and policy-making;
• Exploring opportunities for linking actors across levels of governance (community, district, regional and national), and enable collaborations between actors working on complementary issues and/or movement building on anti-corruption issues.

Projects funded under this component will be for a maximum duration of two (2) years and a budget not exceeding GHS700, 000.00 per project.

Eligibility criteria

• Must be registered with the Registrar-General’s Department with Tax Identification Number;
• Must not have been blacklisted by any donor agency, governmental agency or by STAR-Ghana;
• Must have a demonstrable experience and capacity to undertake national /strategic level policy influencing on anti-corruption issues;
• Must be able to provide audited accounts for the last two years.

For enquiries, please email us at the following address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call (0302) 774488 between 9am and 5pm on week days.