Resource Mobilisation and Proposal Writing Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Resource Mobilisation Officers, Proposal Writers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-NM-062

Before you join: Participants should have basic familiarity with NGO programmes, project budgets or donor-funded work.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

NGOs competing for grants, partnerships and philanthropic funding must turn programme evidence into fundable propositions while protecting mission, community accountability and compliance. Many teams pursue poorly matched calls, prepare budgets late, or submit narratives that fail to answer evaluation criteria. The result is wasted bid effort, unpredictable income and awards that cannot be delivered or reported as promised. Effective resource mobilisation connects donor intelligence, disciplined opportunity choices, credible programme design and sustained donor relationships.

This course equips participants to build and manage a practical resource mobilisation process. Participants assess funding sources, develop a resource mobilisation strategy, research donors, qualify opportunities, and plan donor engagement. They use problem trees, stakeholder analysis, Theory of Change, logical frameworks, SMART indicators, risk registers and activity-based budgets to shape credible proposals. The course also addresses proposal writing, evaluator scoring, consortium arrangements, donor compliance, submission control, award handover and donor stewardship.

Teaching combines short instructor briefings with humanitarian and development funding cases, group analysis, proposal simulations and structured peer review. Participants work through realistic calls for proposals, assess donor fit, develop project logic, prepare budget narratives and test submissions against compliance requirements. They leave with a reusable resource mobilisation toolkit, including templates for donor research, bid decisions, proposal development and post-award relationship management.

The course is suited to programme, fundraising, grants and partnership professionals who contribute to institutional funding, donor relationships or proposal development in NGOs and development organisations.

What you will be able to do

  • Develop a resource mobilisation strategy with income targets, priorities, ownership and performance indicators
  • Map donor segments and assess funding opportunities using eligibility and fit criteria
  • Apply go/no-go decision matrices to prioritise viable funding calls
  • Construct a Theory of Change and logical framework for a donor-funded intervention
  • Develop SMART indicators, means of verification and a project risk register
  • Prepare activity-based budgets and persuasive budget narratives under donor rules
  • Draft proposal sections that respond directly to donor evaluation criteria
  • Establish proposal compliance, submission and donor stewardship processes

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Produce stronger donor-facing proposals with clearer results logic and evidence
  • Make defensible go/no-go recommendations before committing bid-development time
  • Build confidence in discussing programme budgets, risks and donor requirements
  • Use evaluator criteria to review and improve draft proposals objectively
  • Create a practical development plan for managing donor prospects and submissions

For your organisation

  • Improves proposal quality, compliance and responsiveness to donor scoring criteria
  • Reduces time spent pursuing ineligible or strategically weak funding opportunities
  • Strengthens alignment between programme design, budgets, indicators and delivery capacity
  • Creates more consistent donor research, bid-management and document-control practices
  • Supports diversified income pipelines and more purposeful donor stewardship

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can explain the resource mobilisation cycle and assess core funding risks.

  • Resource mobilisation cycle from prospecting through stewardship and renewal
  • Income diversification analysed across institutional, private, philanthropic and earned sources
  • Donor motivations, decision criteria and funding restrictions compared systematically
  • Funding-risk matrix scores concentration, volatility, restrictions and donor dependency
  • Ethical fundraising principles address power, representation, consent and safeguarding
  • Resource mobilisation roles, governance and decision rights defined using RACI

Participants can create a resource mobilisation strategy linked to organisational priorities and income targets.

  • Organisational case for support links mission, evidence, outcomes and funding
  • SWOT analysis identifies internal readiness and external funding constraints
  • Donor portfolio targets set by income type, geography and timeframe
  • Three-year resource mobilisation strategy sequences priorities, owners, budgets and milestones
  • Pipeline stages define qualification, cultivation, proposal, decision and stewardship actions
  • Key performance indicators track win rate, cost and unrestricted income

Participants can research donor prospects and plan targeted relationship-building activities.

  • Donor intelligence profiles capture priorities, eligibility, contacts, cycles and grant sizes
  • Public donor portals, annual reports and grant databases researched efficiently
  • Eligibility screening tests geography, thematic fit, legal status and capacity
  • Relationship mapping identifies champions, gatekeepers, influencers and decision makers
  • Contact plans schedule tailored communications, meetings, follow-up and donor records
  • Donor due diligence checks reputation, sanctions, conflicts and funding conditions

Participants can determine whether a funding opportunity merits a proposal investment.

  • Go/no-go criteria assess fit, competitiveness, capacity, risk and return
  • Bid decision matrix weights strategic value, eligibility, budget and delivery readiness
  • Call documents parsed for mandatory requirements, scoring criteria and deadlines
  • Compliance calendar assigns evidence, approvals, partners and submission milestones
  • Partner selection assesses complementary capability, fiduciary controls and local legitimacy
  • Consortium roles documented through scope, budget shares and accountability arrangements

Participants can develop evidence-based project concepts that reflect stakeholder priorities and risks.

  • Problem tree analysis distinguishes root causes, effects and affected groups
  • Stakeholder analysis maps rights holders, duty bearers, partners and opponents
  • Gender, protection and inclusion analysis identifies unequal barriers and risks
  • Baseline evidence triangulates assessments, administrative data, research and community feedback
  • Theory of Change articulates causal pathways, assumptions and external influences
  • Community consultation methods document consent, priorities and feedback channels

Participants can build a results framework with measurable indicators, verification methods and risk controls.

  • Logical Framework Approach links goal, outcomes, outputs, activities and assumptions
  • SMART indicators specify measure, population, disaggregation, frequency and source
  • Indicator reference sheets define formulas, collection methods and responsibilities
  • Means of verification tested for availability, cost, quality and access
  • Risk register rates probability, impact, mitigation owners and review dates
  • OECD DAC criteria inform relevance, coherence, effectiveness and sustainability claims

Participants can prepare compliant project budgets and explain their cost assumptions clearly.

  • Activity-based budgeting connects work breakdown structures, inputs and unit costs
  • Cost assumptions document quantities, rates, inflation, exchange and procurement factors
  • Direct and indirect costs allocated under donor rules and cost policies
  • Budget narratives justify major cost drivers, value and implementation choices
  • Cash-flow forecasts align instalments, procurement schedules and delivery milestones
  • Value-for-money analysis tests economy, efficiency, effectiveness and equity

Participants can draft and review proposal content against donor instructions and scoring criteria.

  • Donor instructions converted into a proposal compliance and section plan
  • Executive summaries state the need, intervention, results, cost and ask
  • Win themes align organisational strengths with donor priorities and evidence
  • Plain-language drafting uses active voice, logical signposting and quantified claims
  • Evidence hierarchy distinguishes evaluation findings, administrative data and anecdotal testimony
  • Proposal reviews apply evaluator scoring, red-team challenge and copyediting

Participants can manage multi-contributor proposal development through compliant submission.

  • Proposal workplans sequence writing, costing, review, approval and submission tasks
  • Responsibility matrices assign technical, finance, safeguarding and signatory accountabilities
  • Document control manages versions, comments, approvals and final-file integrity
  • Donor compliance checklists verify attachments, formats, declarations and signatures
  • Safeguarding, anti-fraud and data-protection commitments evidenced within proposals
  • Submission risk controls address portals, deadlines, contingencies and audit trails

Participants can support award transition, donor reporting and continuous improvement of funding performance.

  • Award handover packs transfer commitments, budgets, indicators and reporting schedules
  • Donor reporting calendars coordinate narrative, financial, results and audit deadlines
  • Variance explanations connect expenditure, implementation changes, risks and corrective action
  • Donor stewardship plans schedule updates, visits, learning and renewal conversations
  • Lessons-learned reviews capture proposal feedback, win-loss patterns and process improvements
  • Ninety-day application plan prioritises pipeline actions, owners and review dates

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Resource mobilisation strategy template
  2. Donor intelligence profile template
  3. Go/no-go bid decision matrix
  4. Theory of Change and logical framework model
  5. Donor-compliant proposal checklist
  6. Ninety-day funding pipeline plan

Who should attend

  • Resource Mobilisation Officers — need a structured process for building qualified funding pipelines
  • Proposal Writers — need stronger methods for designing and scoring donor-ready submissions
  • Programme Managers — need to translate programme evidence into fundable project designs
  • Grants Managers — need tighter alignment between proposals, budgets and award compliance
  • Partnership Managers — need to assess donor and consortium opportunities before committing resources
  • Finance Officers — need to prepare compliant project budgets and cost justifications

Skills and tools covered

Donor prospect researchProposal developmentLogical framework designGrant budgetingBid compliance managementDonor relationship management

Tools and standards

Theory of Change, Logical Framework Approach, RACI matrix, OECD DAC evaluation criteria

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short briefings to introduce funding methods, donor requirements and proposal-development tools. Participants analyse realistic development and humanitarian funding cases, assess calls for proposals, build project logic and prepare selected proposal components. Group exercises test donor-fit decisions, budget assumptions, risk controls and evaluator scoring. Proposal simulations and peer review show how technical, finance and programme inputs must align. Each participant completes structured application planning for their own funding responsibilities.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have basic familiarity with NGO programmes, project budgets or donor-funded work. Experience contributing to concept notes, proposals, grant reports, partnership discussions or programme planning is useful. Participants should be able to read a call for proposals and work with basic spreadsheets, although advanced financial modelling is not required. The course does not require prior fundraising qualifications, formal proposal-writing experience, specialist monitoring and evaluation expertise, or knowledge of a particular donor’s rules.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should have basic exposure to NGO programmes, grants, fundraising, finance or partnerships. Prior proposal-writing experience is useful but not required, and no specialist fundraising qualification is needed.

Participants should bring a laptop for working with templates and case materials. If permitted by their organisation, they may also bring an anonymised donor call, concept note or project budget for application planning.

The course is designed for resource mobilisation, programme, grants, partnership and finance professionals working in NGOs, humanitarian agencies and development organisations. It is particularly useful for staff who contribute to institutional donor bids.

This course focuses on institutional funding processes, donor research, bid decisions, proposal design, budgeting and compliance. General fundraising courses often focus more heavily on individual giving, events, campaigns or major-donor philanthropy.

Participants can use the donor profile, bid decision matrix, logical framework, budget narrative and compliance checklist for live funding opportunities. The final application plan helps them identify immediate pipeline and proposal-management actions.

Each day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. Time is allocated across ten connected modules covering strategy, donor research, project design, budgeting, writing, submission and stewardship, with case work and application planning throughout.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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