The goal of this five-day intensive course is to equip development practitioners and fundraising professionals with advanced skills and strategies for securing and sustaining donor funding in an increasingly competitive and results-driven environment. Participants will gain the tools to design compelling funding proposals, build strategic donor relationships, and implement long-term resource mobilization strategies aligned with development priorities. The course integrates academic frameworks, practical exercises, real-world case studies, peer-to-peer reviews, and expert feedback to ensure participants leave with actionable insights and enhanced confidence in managing donor engagement across the full funding cycle.

Target Participants

This course is designed for professionals working in development, humanitarian, and non-profit sectors who are directly involved in resource mobilization and donor engagement. The course is especially beneficial for professionals working in NGOs, civil society organizations, social enterprises, UN agencies, and government departments responsible for donor coordination and sustainable financing.

What you will learn 

At the end of the workshop, participants will have re-tooled, up skilled and able to:

• Interpret donor priorities, requirements and funding mechanisms
• Design persuasive fundable community development project concepts
• Develop high quality proposals
• Design implementable work plan and sound budgets
• Design Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) frameworks
• Appraise compliance requirements in submitting grant proposals
• Appraise interests of the community stake holders in project design for impactful outcome and sustainability

Course Duration

5 Days

Course Outline

Module 1: Understanding Donor Ecosystems and ODA Frameworks

• Introduction to ODA and its role in community development
• Priority sectors, eligibility, and ethical considerations in ODA
• Case analysis of an ODA Request for Proposals (RFP)
• Compliance requirements and evaluation criteria
• Role of academic institutions (e.g. universities) in mobilizing community-focused development funds

Module 2: Strategic Resource Mobilization and Community Engagement

• Conducting resource gap analysis for community development
• Barriers to achieving impactful development outcomes
• Facilitating community visioning and co-creating joint agendas for change
• Problem analysis and challenge mapping techniques
• Persuasive crafting of community-responsive interventions

Module 3: Designing Results-Oriented Development Frameworks

• Developing a Theory of Change (ToC) that maps pathways to impact
• Designing measurable Results Frameworks
• Constructing Logical Frameworks (logframes) to align with donor expectations

Module 4: Proposal Writing, Language, and Ethical Standards

• Understanding grant language and proposal structure
• Using persuasive, active, and direct writing
• Ethical considerations in proposal development
• Writing strong problem statements, SMART objectives, and defining clear outcomes and impacts

Module 5: Work Plans, Budgets, MEL, and Submission Strategy

• Designing activity-based and item-based budgets with justifications
• Developing implementable work plans with milestones and deliverables
• Designing Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) frameworks and sustainability plans
• Preparing for proposal submission: checklists, win themes, and action planning
• Closing session and peer networking