FAQ

• For what purposes is it possible to file an Application?

The purpose of any Application for a foundation grant must comply with the OKD Foundation objectives, which consist in supporting projects within the “For Health”, “For Joy” and “For the Future” Programmes.

• What are the required items of the Application?

The Applicant may apply for a foundation grant on the basis of the completed Form “Application for a Foundation Grant”, which relates to a specific Grant Programme, as announced by the OKD Foundation, including required attachments to the Application.

• I am not sure about the Programme type that my Application falls into; what shall I do?

Here's some easy help. You will find the basic characteristics which will help you familiarise yourself with the individual Grant Programmes on the OKD Foundation website (“OKD Foundation Programmes” Section). However if you continue to be unsure, feel free to call, and we will gladly help you.

• When may I apply to the OKD Foundation for a grant?

Every year, the OKD Foundation announces one grant round during which it is possible to file Applications with all the Grant Programmes. The grant round usually lasts six weeks, and you will obtain specific deadlines on the OKD Foundation website and, unless you are in contact with the OKD Foundation for the first time, also by e-mail.

• Is it necessary to affix a signature to the Application?

By affixing your signature to the Application, you confirm that all the data set forth in the Application are true and correspond to the reality. At the same time, you thereby agree with the inclusion of the data, set forth in the Application for a Foundation Grant and disclosed during the project implementation, in the information databases accessible to the public. Through his or her signature, a statutory representative confirms his or her consent to the prepared project.

• Is it necessary to co-participate in the project financing?

We do not require this, but we appreciate the financial co-participation of other partners. A contribution, granted by a community or private sponsor, is a signal to the Managing Board that the project represents high quality and is needful.

• How many Applications may one organisation file?

One organisation may file any number of Applications provided that one Application form is provided for each project. However, it is necessary to consider the realistic possibilities of the OKD Foundation, as well as your possibilities, with respect to the project implementation.

• May the budget under the “For Europe” Programme also include an agreement on work performance for a specified worker of our organisation who is in charge of the contact with an outside processor, including the generation of inputs for the Application completion?

Yes, it may. Everything within the project.

• Are there any limits applicable to the grant amount?

The OKD Foundation is ready to support minor activities for which the Applicant needs just a few thousand Czech crowns, as well as the large project that costs hundreds of thousands of crowns. It is important that in preparing the Grant Application, the given organisation should be basing its estimates on real prices and should not be unreliably cutting or increasing costs. There are limits expressing the maximum amount of one foundation grant – the OKD Foundation introduced such limits on the basis of its experience from the first grant round in spring 2008.
The “For Europe” and “For Joy” Programmes have the limit of CZK 300,000, and the “For the Future” and “For Health” Programmes have the limit of CZK 1,000,000. However in substantiated cases, a higher grant amount is not excluded.

• Is it also possible to apply for a grant for capital projects (e.g. a car, a PC purchase…)?

It is possible to apply for a grant for capital projects within the “For the Future” and “For Health” Programmes (in the latter case, only to a limited extent), but it always depends on a specific project and activity. No grant may be used for any settlement of leasing, loans, debts or receivables.

• Where shall I send the completed Application?

The completed Application is to be sent to the address specified in the individual Programme.

• Will the OKD Foundation finance any project which was implemented before the agreement was signed, and will the OKD Foundation recognise previous costs under long-term projects?

The OKD Foundation may not provide any financial supports retroactively. Any funds will only be granted for activities to be carried out after an agreement is signed.

• Who may apply to the OKD Foundation for a grant?

Within the “For Europe” Programme, non-governmental nonprofit-making organisations, municipalities, nursery schools and elementary and secondary schools may apply for a grant. Within the other programmes, civil associations, foundations and endowment funds, public utilities, church organisations, local authorities, allowance organisations, schools (whose founder is a municipality or a regional authority), communal associations and clubs, children’s homes (whose founder is the regional authority or the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport), children and youth homes and leisure centres may apply for a grant.

The following entities or persons may not apply for any grant
a) business entities (i.e. limited liability companies, joint-stock companies, etc.),
b) individual businessmen (i.e. persons running their business based on a trade license),
c) natural persons, except for persons residing in the territory of the Czech Republic and operating educational or medical facilities.

 

• Is it also possible to support entities based outside the Moravian-Silesian Region?

The OKD Foundation primarily supports projects based in the Moravian-Silesian Region to the extent of 80 % of the financial amount specified for a specific grant round, nevertheless 20% of funds are awarded to projects outside the Region – therefore, high-quality projects always have a chance.
Details regarding the organisation or individual that may apply for a grant can be found in the website section “How to Obtain a Grant”.

• Who decides on the result?

It is the Managing Board of the OKD Foundation that decides on awarding the foundation grants on the basis of an assessment of Applications. In making its decision, the Managing Board takes into account recommendations of expert panels. These panels consist of experts having knowledge of the non-profit-making sector.

• I have received less money than requested. What should I do?

Assessing any Application takes into account the point of whether the requested funds correspond to real prices – if the budget, proposed by you, is too exaggerated, you will most likely receive less money or your Application will be fully eliminated. In addition, the Managing Board of the OKD Foundation strives to give preference to a model of (at least partial) support for projects with the highest possible quality rather than a model focusing support on a few projects.

• My Project was not included among the winners. Why?

Even though from the perspective of the distributed fund amount, the OKD Foundation ranks among the largest foundations in the Czech Republic, the number of Applications for Grants exceeds the OKD Foundation's potential by many times. This may sometimes result in a situation in which really good projects do not obtain a grant. We would like you to not be discouraged by a failure to obtain a grant and would like you to file your Application again in the next round. We also recommend that you participate in training designed for Applicants and prepared by us for you every year. You will learn how to prepare higher-quality Applications, thus increasing your chance of obtaining a grant.

• Is the selection procedure impartial?

The selection procedure is absolutely impartial. Our external partners from the Ostrava-based Community Development Institute and the Brno-based Partnership Foundation take care of the administration of Applications. They prepare inputs for the panels, consisting of experts from the nonprofit-making sector, who submit their recommendations to the Managing Board of the OKD Foundation, which makes a final decision.

• What date should be specified as suitable for the initiating of a project?

An optimum date for the initiation of a project should be scheduled so as to occur in the period after the projects of the individual grant rounds are approved and should be no later than 12 months after the conclusion of the agreement. For example, the anticipated termination of the autumn 2008 grant round is December 2008 and afterwards, with respect to approved projects, agreements would be signed in January 2009. It would thus be possible to schedule the project initiation for February 2009. However, it will depend on the project type.

• How is the foundation grant transferred to the successful Applicant?

The first portion of the foundation grant is transferred to the account of the successful Applicant within 45 days.

Payment Time Schedule:

Events: 2 payments
70% of the financial amount
30% of the financial amount (upon Final Report delivery)

Projects: 3 payments
50% of the financial amount (upon Agreement conclusion)
30% of the financial amount (upon Interim Report delivery)
20% of the financial amount (upon Final Report delivery)

Investments: 2 payments
70% of the financial amount
30% of the financial amount (upon Final Report delivery)

• We have received money for salaries, but in the end, the job will be done by volunteers. May we use any financial saving, achieved within the project, in any other manner? Is it possible to move funds between and among other items of the budget?

Any change to the project, i.e. also any change in the project budget, is subject to prior approval. For the purpose of an amendment to the Agreement, there is a specific form available on the websites of the OKD Foundation and administrator.

• What must an accounting document contain?

The required items of the accounting document are defined in Section 10 of the Accounting Act (Act No. 563/1991 Coll.). The accounting document must include the accounting document identification, the accounting case subject matter and participants, the amount and the currency in which the amount is stated, the date and a signature.
Furthermore, the OKD Foundation requires that the relevant documents which are financed from the OKD Foundation should be properly provided with the agreement / contract number identification and the “OKD Foundation” name.

• By when must all the funds be drawn down?

The OKD Foundation has not set any time limit and we are not limited by any budget period. As such, no uniform limit is set – it will depend on the project type. The funds are designed for the project, and therefore, they should be drawn down as effectively as possible within the project. An optimum period for one project is one calendar year, maximally two calendar years.

• In what form should the final account be submitted – is it associated with much paperwork?

For the purposes of the final account, you have available a simple table which can be found on our website.

• What should I do to successfully apply for a grant next time round?

There are a few possibilities to increase your project’s chance of success. One of them is an application for participation in the Applicants training, prepared for you by the OKD Foundation in cooperation with the Community Development Institute. Information on the deadlines and other important information can be found on the websites of the OKD Foundation and the Community Development Institute, which is an expert guarantor of the training.

• When will I have the next chance?

If you have not succeeded with your Application, you will have a chance in the next grant round. New grant rounds are usually announced by the OKD Foundation once a year.

• May I help as a volunteer?

Volunteers help the OKD Foundation organise a number of events, where the OKD Foundation presents itself to the public (for example, on the Days of the OKD Foundation, during the OKD Mining Festivities etc.) or where the OKD Foundation strives to be useful (e.g. the OKD Foundation brought children from Children’s Homes, located in the north of Moravia, to the Summer Shakespeare Festival). If you are interested in becoming involved, we will gladly welcome you.

• When was the OKD Foundation established and what is its goal?

The OKD Foundation was established on 25 January 2008 under Act No. 227/1997 Coll., on foundations and endowment funds, and was incorporated by the Regional Court in Ostrava in the Commercial Register, Section N, Entry 280. The objectives of the OKD Foundation rest on four key pillars – health promotion, supporting cultural life and education, developing the region and the environment and assisting projects in obtaining grants from the European Union.

• Who is the founder of the OKD Foundation?

The sole founder of the OKD Foundation is OKD, a.s., the largest hard coal producer in the Czech Republic. It operates in the south of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin (Ostrava – Karviná District), where it runs four hard coal deep mines.

• How is the OKD Foundation financed?

The OKD is solely financed from sponsors' contributions. OKD became the first sponsor. It contributes to the OKD Foundation with a fixed amount from its profit.

• Does the OKD Foundation have any other income resources?

The contributors include New World Resources Group companies and other sponsors.

• Can the OKD Foundation founder or largest sponsors influence the grant round results?

Neither the founder nor the largest sponsors influence any grant round results. The Managing Board of the OKD Foundation decides on the awarding of the foundation grants on the basis of an assessment of the Applications. During the decision-making process, the Managing Board takes into account recommendations made by the expert panels, consisting of experts from the nonprofit-making sector.