SeyCCAT announces second Blue Grants Fund call for proposals |08 June 2018

On World Oceans Day today, the Seychelles’ Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT) announces the second Blue Grants Fund (BGF#2)request for proposals.

Having only recently announced the first Blue Grants Fund project partnerships, SeyCCAT has today announced details of the second Blue Grants Fund and is seeking applicants and partnerships to apply through a competitive ‘Request for Proposals’ process.

SeyCCAT’s chief executive, Martin Callow, states that, “we are delighted to be launching our second Blue Grants Fund on World Ocean Day.  We are committed to supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals, in particular Goal 14 (Life Below Water), and our goal is for the Blue Grants Fund to help encourage the development of solutions for a healthy Ocean.

The Ocean plays a vital role in the daily lives of Seychellois people - it provides much of the oxygen we breathe, foods to nourish us, opportunities for employment and prosperity, a huge wealth of known and undiscovered biodiversity, it services the protection of our coastlines, and gives us spectacular shorelines that make Seychelles a destination so highly prized among tourists.  However, it is increasingly clear that there are multiple challenges facing Seychelles’ ocean, islands, and way of life. 

This is why, for this second call for proposals, we have decided to focus our attention on supporting projects and partnerships that can address any (one) of three strategic objectives”.

-           Strategic Objective 1: Support new and existing marine and coastal protected areas and sustainable use zones.

-           Strategic Objective 2: Empower the fisheries sector with robust science and knowhow to improve governance, sustainability, value, and market options.

-           Strategic Objective 5: Trial and nurture appropriate business models to secure the sustainable development of Seychelles’ Blue economy.

SeyCCAT will accept Blue Grants Fund applications from individual (and collaborations of) locally registered NGOs or CSOs (including business organisations), parastatal organisations and

government agencies.

“We will also accept applications from individual citizens of Seychelles. SeyCCAT requires lead project proposers to have legally existed and operated in Seychelles for a minimum of one year,” says Mr Callow.

The deadline for concept notes for this call for proposals is July 20, 2018.

Mr Callow goes on to state, “it is our intention that SeyCCAT funds are routed to local partnerships, which we believe will help with the co-creation of innovative and impactful projects.  We seek to support improvements in marine conservation and sustainable fisheries outcomes, enhanced opportunities and capacities to develop, scale and share creative ocean solutions and knowledge, as well as support the development of environmentally and socially responsible “Blue economy” business models.  We look forward to seeing new partnerships emerge and to supporting novel projects for the benefit of our ocean”.

Interested applicants can download the detailed Request for Proposals, application guidance notes, concept proposal templates,and related materials from the SeyCCAT website (https://seyccat.org/what-we-do/#how-to-apply) – or submit a message to info@seyccat.org to request the application information, or call on: 432 5806.

SeyCCAT has also announced it will host a series of public Blue Grants Fund ‘Question and Answer’ sessions to help potential applicants understand how to engage with the Trust:

• June 26: Praslin, Baie Ste Anne community centre from 10am – 12pm
• June 26: La Digue community centre from 2pm – 4pm
• June 27: Mahé, SFA conference room from 10am – 12pm

Full details about SeyCCAT can be found online at www.seyccat.org.