In pursuit of its strategic objectives, the Active Citizens Fund (ACF) in Portugal has contracted with the donor countries (EEA Grants) a set of targets to be achieved, that stem from a results-based management approach serving as guidance for the launch of calls and the selection of projects during the entire duration of the ACF in Portugal (2018-2024).

The Outcomes were broken down into “expected programme results” and, for each of these, output and outcome indicators were established. To achieve the contracted targets, the contribution of all approved projects is critical, through their outputs (goods and services produced by a project for a specific target group or project beneficiaries) and their outcomes (short and medium term effects of a project on a specific target group or project beneficiaries).

The Results Framework set out below shows the functional relationships between expected programme results, output indicators (highlighted in blue) and outcome indicators (highlighted in green) adopted by the ACF in Portugal, as well as the targets that the supported projects should globally help to achieve. Programme Level Indicators (highlighted in yellow) apply to projects of all Outcomes.

 

Programme level indicators
Expected programme results	Indicator	Target
Civil society and active citizenship strengthened and vulnerable groups empowered	Number of NGOs directly funded	200
	Number of people engaged in civil society organisation activities	7000

 

OUTCOME 1
Expected programme results	Indicator	Target
Strengthened democratic culture and civic awareness	Number of NGO-produced evidence-based reports on public/private policies reported in the media	6
	Share of target group showing civic concerns	(+20%)
Citizens’ participation in civic activities promoted	Number of awareness raising campaigns carried out	14
	Number of civic initiatives led by supported NGOs¹	25
	Number of volunteers recruited by supported NGOs	200
Civic education supported	Number of partnerships between NGOs and schools promoting civic education	12
	Number of people educated in civic rights	1140
NGO watchdog role reinforced	Number of NGO initiatives promoting access to information on public/private policies	12
	Number of NGOs engaged in monitoring public and private decision-making	9

¹Excluding awareness raising campaigns

 

OUTCOME 2
Expected programme results	Indicator	Target
Increased support for human rights	Number of national policies and laws influenced	5
	Share of target group showing concern for human rights	(+20%)
NGO human rights advocacy supported	Number of NGOs engaged in advocacy work on human rights	20
Awareness-raising on human rights promoted	Number of awareness raising campaigns carried out	20
	Number of professional staff trained	220
	Number of youths mobilised by NGOs to engage in human rights work	420

 

OUTCOME 3
Expected programme results	Indicator	Target
Vulnerable groups are empowered	Number of beneficiaries of services provided or improved	950
	Number of vulnerable individuals reached by empowerment measures	2200
Economic participation of vulnerable groups supported	Number of vulnerable individuals trained in economic empowerment	760
Outreach to youth at risk of social exclusion supported	Number of NGOs specifically working with youth at risk of social exclusion	35
Members of vulnerable groups mobilised to advocate for their needs	Number of NGOs adopting participatory methods with vulnerable groups	30

 

OUTCOME 4
Expected programme results	Indicator	Target
Enhanced capacity and sustainability of civil society (organisations and the sector)	Number of NGOs less dependent on public funding (excluding ACF funding) by at least 10%	5
	Number of NGOs referencing research/evidence in their advocacy work	(+10%)
	Number of NGOs with effective management procedures	(+20%)
	Number of NGOs with transparent and accountable governance procedures	(+20%)
	Number of initiatives implemented through partnerships between NGOs or with public/private entities	220
Platforms and networks among NGOs developed or sustained	Number of NGOs that are members of civil society networks/platforms	50
	Number of partnerships between NGOs or with public/private entities supported	100
Capacity building provided to NGOs	Number of NGOs conducting an assessment of their organisational capacity building needs and preparing action plans	120
	Number of NGOs participating in capacity building initiatives funded by the programme	175
	Number of professional staff trained	1000

 

BILATERAL OUTCOME
Expected programme results	Indicator	Target
Enhanced collaboration between beneficiary and donor state entities involved in the programme	Level of satisfaction with the partnership	≥4.5²
	Level of trust between cooperating entities in Beneficiary States and Donor States	≥4.5³
	Share of cooperating organisations that apply the knowledge acquired from bilateral partnership	≥50%
	Share of participants in bilateral initiatives funded by the ACF bilateral fund reporting improved knowledge/methods/approaches	≥60%
Partnerships between beneficiary and donor state entities supported	Number of projects involving cooperation with a donor project partner	12
Cooperation between beneficiary and donor state entities facilitated through the ACF bilateral fund	Number of bilateral cooperation initiatives funded by the ACF bilateral fund	25

 

² Based on a scale of 1 to 7

³ Based on a scale of 1 to 7