Cerv daphne call 2026 – proposal writing consultancy

Terms of Reference

Purpose:

CARE Deutschland is planning to submit a funding proposal under the Citizens, Equality, Rights, and Values (CERV) Programme – to respond to the needs of women and girls affected by Sexual Gender Based Violence (SGBV) under Priority 1 for Supporting intermediary organisations (providing financial support to civil society organisations) working in the fields of gender-based violence.

The project will be implemented in Germany, through the domestic department of CARE Deutschland, as well as in Ukraine, through the country office CARE Ukraine. It aims at aligning approaches and joint learning, and depending on its final orientation will focus on a specific risk or thematic area within the field of SGBV. This can be psychosocial support and trauma-sensitive support for survivors or also address further needs, which will be identified. In Germany, subgranting will be provided for women-led organizations working with refugees, whilst in Ukraine, focus will be on areas away from the frontline but in remote or underfunded areas. Alongside financial support, capacity building will be provided to subgrantees for instance to facilitate linkages to formal support systems, establish reliable referral pathways and enhance grassroot organisations’ position within the general support system.

CARE is looking for a consultant to support the project development process and draft the proposal.

Objective:

To develop and successfully submit a proposal to the EU CERV call (deadline for call submission: 5th November 2026).

Area of Focus:

Germany and Ukraine

Duration:

Between 1st October – 6th November 2025 (approx. 10 working days, remote).

Application Deadline:

30 September 2026

Background:

The call for proposals is part of the European Union’s broader commitment under the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV) to prevent and combat all forms of violence, with a particular focus on gender-based violence and violence against children. The CERV-2026-DAPHNE call supports actions that contribute to the prevention of violence, the protection and support of victims and survivors, and the strengthening of systems and practices that respond effectively to violence against women, children, young people and other groups at risk.

The call is implemented within the framework of the CERV Programme and addresses five thematic priorities covering different forms of gender-based violence and violence against children. These include the prevention and combating of all forms of violence against women and girls, including domestic violence, as well as violence against children, young people and other groups at risk, including LGBTQI persons and persons with disabilities.

The CERV-2026-DAPHNE call is closely linked to key EU policy frameworks and initiatives, including the Roadmap for Women’s Rights, the Gender Equality Strategy 2026–2030, the EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child, the Commission Recommendation on developing and strengthening integrated child protection systems in the best interests of the child, and the EU Strategy on Victims’ Rights. Projects are expected to contribute to the implementation of these policy objectives and to strengthen cooperation and evidence-based approaches to preventing and responding to violence.

For further details, in particular with regard to Priority 1, please consult the following link: Call document for the "Call for proposals to prevent and combat gender-based violence and violence against children"

General Objective

To develop a high-quality, donor-compliant, and strategically aligned funding proposal for the CERV Equal Call, ensuring clarity, coherence, and adherence to EU funding priorities.

Specific Objectives are to

• Work with CARE DE and CARE UKR to develop a project proposal that responds to the current needs that both offices have identified in the targeted geographic areas and in line with CARE DE guidance using the CERV template.
• To ensure full compliance with the CERV Equal Call guidelines, including technical, administrative and financial requirements.
• To write the proposal as per team design, making sure that lessons learnt from existing projects are considered, and contribute to other annexes and ensure the quality of proposal.
• To enhance the readability and impact of the proposal by employing donor-preferred language and formatting.
• Receive feedback from team during the review process and incorporate into final documents.

Purpose, Scope & Deliverables

The Consultant will lead the proposal writing process following the requirements of CERV Equal Call.

Scope and deliverables:

• Conduct an in-depth review of the CERV Equal Call guidelines to ensure full compliance with technical and administrative requirements.
• Develop a high-quality, logically structured proposal that effectively addresses the funding call’s objectives and evaluation criteria based on input from the design workshops/meetings and review/edit sectoral specialists’ inputs.
• A finished proposal using the narrative CERV template provided by 26th October 2026 (submission to EC CERV by CARE Germany on 5th November 2026).
• A brief post-submission report summarizing key donor expectations, identified strengths and weaknesses in the proposal, and recommendations for future applications.

Timing and Duration

The consultancy will commence around 1st October 2026.

Based on CARE’s experience, a total of approx. 10 consultancy days should be sufficient to conduct all activities.

Responsibilities

Responsibility of Consultant:

In consultation with CARE staff, the consultant is responsible for:

• Leading the writing of the proposal based on the project design and key components provided by CARE, ensuring that it is structured, coherent, and aligned with the CERV Equal Call's priorities.
• Drafting all sections of the proposal, including the problem statement, objectives, methodology, expected results, activities, impact assessment, and sustainability strategy.
• Ensuring the proposal narrative clearly articulates the project’s alignment with the funding priorities and EU expectations.
• Incorporating all relevant technical and logistical details into the proposal to ensure full compliance with the CERV Equal Call guidelines.
• Editing and refining the draft proposal to enhance readability, coherence, and alignment with donor expectations, ensuring that the language is persuasive and professional.
• Ensuring that the proposal aligns with the budget and work plan, resolving any inconsistencies or gaps between the narrative and financial components.
• Review and finalize the proposal to ensure it meets EU standards and is ready for submission.

Responsibility of CARE:

• Develop and define the project design.
• Provide information and technical input on the key contents of the proposal: target groups and number of beneficiaries, identified needs and proposed response strategy, intervention logic (results, activities and indicators), implementation modalities (partners/stakeholders at country and regional level, coordination mechanisms etc.) to ensure that proposed interventions are in line with existing needs, capacities and country-specific government rules and regulations on pre-positioning, deployments, use of cash or vouchers etc., and the country-specific humanitarian response mechanism.
• Coordinate with government and civil society actors and collect information required for the proposal.
• Provide the Consultant with all necessary documents and data relevant to the proposal, including reports, assessments, project evaluations, and any other information needed for the proposal development.
• Prepare the budget and finalize it based on consultant’s review.
• Provide consolidated feedback on the draft proposal documents.
• Submit the project to EU via Tender & Funding Portal.
• Administer the contract and issue payments based on the agreed schedule.

Reporting lines

The consultant will report to the Focal Points mentioned below:

Anne Ritter, Desk Officer Strategic Project Development, Domestic Department, CARE Deutschland.

Qualifications & Preferred Skills

Education:

Required: University degree and relevant work experience in EU proposal design.

Preferred: Master’s degree in a relevant field (Social Science, Public Administration, Business Administration, Development Studies) and relevant work experience in EU proposal design.

Professional qualifications required:

• Minimum 6 years of technical experience in project development
• Proven experience of developing EU proposals preferably CERV proposals, including experience with, and understanding of CERV program design guidelines.
• Good understanding of the situation of refugee women in Germany, in particular with regard to issues of sexual exploitation of/violence against women, girls and queer persons both in and outside of camp settings,
• Good understanding of push factors in home countries, especially Ukraine, and the war context in Ukraine.
• Good understanding of forms and effects of (S)GBV.
• Strong program design skills, including capacity to prepare logical and consistent documents
• Ability to work efficiently and effectively with project members in various locations, including remotely writing and revising proposal documents.
• Ability to integrate different experiences, methodologies, and approaches from a diverse range of stakeholders, organizations, and technical experts from multiple sectors.
• Excellent knowledge of MS Office (especially Excel and word) and MS Teams applications.
• Very good communication skills in both German (conversations with stakeholders) and English (proposal writing).