At Jersey Overseas Aid, we are committed to upholding the OECD-agreed Principles of Aid Effectiveness in every aspect of our work, engaging a selection of safeguards and monitoring approaches to ensure that every £1 of our funds has the greatest impact.
Partnerships
JOA only partners with organisations that have been approved following a rigorous selection process, which includes an analysis of the organisation’s experience and expertise and a review of constitutional documents, accounts, and policies and procedures.
Proposal Assessments
Approved partners wishing to receive funding from JOA to implement development or humanitarian projects are subject to a detailed assessment process conducted by an experienced team who have experience co-ordinating development and humanitarian projects in over a dozen countries between them. For multi-year development projects, the process involves a two-stage approach, with shortlisted organisations required to submit detailed proposals that outline the project’s objectives, an assessment of needs, organisational controls and governance, approach to safeguarding, financial management, monitoring and reporting, and detailed budget. Following a desk-review of submitted proposals, shortlisted organisations are then assessed in-country by JOA’s programme team to determine the quality of financial management, governance, and capacity to implement.
Oversight & Accountability
All JOA project funding is subject to a Grant Agreement, that includes a range of terms to ensure high standards of financial management and to guarantee the return of funds in the event of their misuse. Throughout the implementation of all JOA projects, partner organisations are required to report regularly to JOA in relation to their activities and to submit yearly financial reports accounting for all funds expended. Multi-year development projects are also subjected to an independent evaluation to assess the impact of the work undertaken, as well as an independent financial audit.
JOA-led Monitoring
Trips to monitor JOA-funded projects are incredibly useful, as they give us – and the taxpayers we represent – the chance to monitor and verify the activities that have been funded. JOA’s dedicated Monitoring & Impact Officer is responsible for conducting in-country monitoring visits of JOA’s multi-year development projects. These visits take place mid-way into a project and involve a one-day office assessment of the partner organisation – including spot-checks of financial records – followed by several days engaging with project stakeholders (including local staff, community members, and Government officials) to review activities and assess the effectiveness and efficiency of each project.
Transparency
At JOA, we are committed to ensuring the transparency and accountability of our work. To ensure this, we make information about all development and humanitarian grants publicly available, each year, in our Annual Reports. In addition, JOA’s financial accounts are published yearly in JOA’s Annual Report and are subject to scrutiny from Treasury.