Step-by-step to your Subsidy (HQAI Facilitation Fund)
Step-by-step to your Subsidy (HQAI Facilitation Fund)
Thank you for your interest in HQAI's services. We guide you step-by-step to your subsidy.
Be aware that your complete candidacy file has to be handed in at latest three weeks before the Facilitation Fund Management Committee (FFMC) meets. The quality assurance team will inform you of the date of the FFMC meetings.
We encourage you to read these documents before you start to prepare your candidacy file for the HQAI Facilitation Fund. There is also an e-learning at the end of this page that you can use to get an introduction to HQAI and its services, and key actors and stages in the audit process.
POL114 provides you with general information on HQAI's independent quality assurance services (in the document called schemes): certification, independent verification, and benchmarking. It will introduce you to the different audit cycles of each service and gives you an idea of how we work. This document helps you to decide which service you want to use.
The below policies introduce you to the HQAI Facilitation Fund, how it is managed, and how you can file a candidacy. Each step is outlined below to support you in fully understanding the process.
POL114 quality assurance policy
Information on benchmarking, independent verification, and certification.
STEP 1: CREATE A CANDIDACY FILE
This step takes some time as you need to collect documentation within your organisation, including completing the application form.
The application form provides HQAI with information about your organisation and the service of your choice. HQAI estimates the audit costs based on that. The estimated audit costs help you as well to decide how much the Fund should cover. The maximum amount of a subsidy is 90% of the audit cost. Check out our cost estimator to get an idea of audit costs and state in your letter clearly the amount the HQAI Facilitation Fund should cover.
Please read the checklist for a complete candidacy file below.
STEP 2: IN YOUR CANDIDACY FILE
Deadline: send in your candidacy file at least three weeks before the FFMC meets.
Make sure your candidacy file is complete and send it to quality@hqai.org.
STEP 3: HQAI CHECKS YOUR FILE
HQAI checks the completeness of your candidacy file and reaches out to you if more information is needed. Based on your candidacy file, HQAI estimates the audit costs which is then the basis for the FFMC to grant a subsidy. HQAI transfers the file to the FFMC.
STEP 4: FFMC MEETS & DECIDES
The FFMC meets two times per year and gives priorities to:
- National organisations operating in the country where they are headquartered or in a neighboring country.
- National organisations working in countries with the highest number of people in need, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) annual Global Humanitarian Overview (GHO).
- National organisations with lower annual incomes that require financial support.
- Subsidies will be prioritised for new national organisations undergoing their first initial audit.
STEP 5: FUND IS GRANTED/REJECTED
HQAI reaches out to you with the decision made by the FFMC. We discuss the next steps.
CHECKLIST for a complete candidacy file:
- Completed application form (click here)
- Proof of the payment of the application fees. This fee should be processed before your candidacy file is presented to the FFMC. This fee is part of the total audit cost and subject to the HQAI Facilitation Fund.
- Documentation that demonstrates that your organisation is a legal entity in the country you are based in and has been registered for at least five years.
- Documents demonstrating that the organisation has robust finance control mechanisms that, at a minimum, respond to the national legal requirements (this includes providing the two last audited financial statements and evidence of its annual budget for the past 3 years.)
- A letter clearly explaining:
- how the organisation became aware of the CHS (or other reference standard) and HQAI
- the reasons the organisation seeks independent verification or certification
- the reasons for requesting a subsidy, along with a plan for transitioning to financial independence to cover the audit service costs in the future
- the rationale for the percentage of subsidy being requested.
6. Two Memorandum of Understandings or partnership agreements with two different partners or donors and/or two referees of organisations partnering with your organisation in recent years (donors or
other humanitarian or development organisations).
Another interesting link for learning how an audit works
E-learning
Our e-learning course (introduction) for future focal points and all who are interested