Narrative communication strategies: best practices for NGOs seeking funding from CIDA

"In June 2010, at the G-8 Muskoka Initiative on Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, Prime Minister Stephen Harper promised that Canada would provide 2.85 billion dollars (over five years) in funding to support health initiatives for mothers and children in developing countries(Government of Canada, 2011).This focus on maternal and child health is in keeping with three of the eight Millennium Development Goals, which focus on empowering women, reducing child mortality and improving maternal health. AllUnited Nation member states have agreed to support these goals and achieve specified health, gender, environmental and educationaltargets by 2015(World Health Organization [WHO], 2011).Canada’s government has thus committed tremendous resources, both financial and administrative, to achieve these targets that relate to maternal and child health.  Seventy-five million dollars of this promised money is being disseminated by CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency) to Canadian NGOs(Non-governmental organizations) who can provide program proposals that focus on maternal, newborn and child health initiatives in third world countries –most of the countries eligible for the funding are located in Africa(CIDA, 2010). It is from interest in the Muskoka initiative and the CIDA funding specifically that thisresearch project developed. When considering the relationship between NGOs and governmentas in this situation–and specifically in this case a Canadian NGO and the Canadian government –a few key questions arose. When producing proposals for government, specifically CIDA, what strategies do NGOs employ when communicating those proposals in the hopes that they will be allocated funds? How can these communication strategies be analyzed?" - p1