ENGAGE
CSO Leaders in Advocacy and Public Policy Evaluation
Final Report
Period: October 2016 - Feb 2021
Submitted to: USAID/Morocco
By: Kawtar CHRIYAA, Project Coordinator
Cooperative Agreement Award No. AID-608-A-16-00004
Grantee: Forum AZZAHRAE for Moroccan Women
Rabat, Morocco
Table des matières
I. Summary in French........................................................................................................................... 4
II. Project Presentation......................................................................................................................... 5
1. Project Context............................................................................................................................... 5
2. Project Objectives.......................................................................................................................... 6
3. Target (reached) population....................................................................................................... 6
4. Logical Framework........................................................................................................................ 8
III. Summary of Results & Outcomes................................................................................................ 8
1. Content: ........................................................................................................................................... 9
2. Structures:..................................................................................................................................... 11
3. Relations: ...................................................................................................................................... 12
4. Cultures: ........................................................................................................................................ 13
5. Gender Mainstreaming:.............................................................................................................. 14
IV. Progress against indicators....................................................................................................... 15
PMO 1: Strengthening FAFM’s capacity to become a regional ISO............................................. 15
Indicator 1: Number of public policies introduced, adopted, repealed, changed or implemented 
consistent with citizen input (F)....................................................................................................... 15
Indicator 2: Internal organizational and technical capacity building measured by OD............... 16
Indicator 3: Number of petitions addressed to local authorities by FAFM................................... 22
Indicator 4: Number of multi-stakeholder meetings organized to provide platform for 
interaction between GoM/CSOs/private Sector in Public Policy................................................... 24
PMO 2: Building capacity of local women and youth NGOs to become local watchdogs ....... 26
Indicator 5: Percentage of CSOs supported by FAFM who have strengthened their 
organizational capacities, as measured by the simplified DO........................................................ 26
Indicator 6: Number of petitions addressed to local authorities by local CSOs ........................... 31
PMO 3 : Empower young activists to participate actively in public policy............................... 33
Indicator 7: The ratio of participants having acquired new capacities through young capacity 
building programs ............................................................................................................................. 33
Indicator 8: Number of young participants who integrated local CSOs ........................................ 39
Additional Outcomes .............................................................................................................................. 40
The National Observatory on Women related Public Policy ...................................................... 40
Program to strengthen the capacities of the advisory bodies of the Council of the Rabat￾Salé-Kenitra region: ............................................................................................................................ 41
V. Recommended Good Practices ..................................................................................................... 42
1. Organizational Diagnosis:.......................................................................................................... 42
2. Simplified/Adapted OD .............................................................................................................. 42
3. Participatory project development with youth..................................................................... 43
4. M&E model document................................................................................................................. 43
VI. Lessons Learned .......................................................................................................................... 44
VII. Sustainability: Multiplier Effect................................................................................................ 45
Appendices................................................................................................................................................ 47
Appendice 1: Examples of Activity Brochures ............................................................................... 47
Appendice 2: ENGAGE in a Nutshell ................................................................................................. 52
Appendice 3: ENGAGE in Pictures .................................................................................................... 56
I.Summary in French
“ENGAGE CSO Leaders in Advocacy and Policy Evaluation” est un projet de 4 ans, réalisé par 
Forum Azzahrae pour la Femme Marocaine (FAFM) dans la région de Rabat Salé Kenitra. Le 
projet avait pour objectif principal de transformer FAFM en une Organisation de Support 
Intermédiaire (Intermediate Support Organisation). A l’issu d’ENGAGE, FAFM s’est forgé 
une nouvelle image et s’est positionné en tant qu’une ONG œuvrant pour la promotion des 
droits de la femme et ayant une grande légitimité grâce à ses actions et sa présence sur le 
terrain. Ce nouveau « branding » a été réalisée en travaillant sur 3 différents axes :
1. Renforcement des capacités organisationnelles du FAFM
FAFM a eu la chance de renforcer les capacités de ses membres (plaidoyer, gestion 
de projets, communication pour le développement, suivi et évaluation…). Le Forum 
s’est aussi doté d’un système d’information et de gestion pour développer non 
seulement sa gestion administrative et financière mais aussi son réseau d’OSCs au 
niveau national.
2. Renforcement des capacités des OSCs locales
FAFM a assisté 40 OSCs dans la région de Rabat Salé Kénitra pour développer leurs 
capacités organisationnelles ainsi que leur capacité de plaidoyer. Une quinzaine de 
sessions de formation ont été organisées et animées par différents experts. Suite à 
l’assistance technique de l’équipe FAFM, 12 pétitions ont été préparées, parmi 
lesquelles 7 ont été présentées aux conseils locaux.
Le programme de formation des OSCs a abouti à la préparation de guides pratiques 
(gestion de projets, suivi et évaluation des politiques territoriales, plaidoyer, 
présentation d’avis consultatif) disponibles pour toute autre OSC.
3. Renforcement des capacités de jeunes acteurs associatifs
Trois différents programmes étaient dédiés à la formation et l’accompagnement des 
jeunes acteurs associatifs : Young Women Advocates, Young Local Watchdogs et 
Young Human Rights Reporters. Pendant les activités du projet, 70 jeunes femmes et 
hommes ont eu la chance de participer à des formations enrichissantes, des visites à 
des institutions publiques et des rencontres avec des personnalités.
II. Project Presentation
1. Project Context
The reality of Moroccan civil society combines opposites, as confirmed by the results of 
the national dialogue on civil society in 2013, in which 7000 NGOs and more than 10000 
civil actors have participated. On the one hand, CSOs are considered a key partner of the 
state in the process of human rights promotion. On the other hand, this same civil 
society is still suffering from a number of obstacles even after the 2011 constitution 
promoting participatory democracy.
First, the Moroccan legal environment is generally inappropriate for freedom of 
associative work which reduces the field of intervention for CSOs on the level of 
oversight, accountability and policy influence; thus requiring the strengthening of CSO 
capacities in advocacy for legal enabling environment related to civil society, and skills 
for influencing different laws and legislations related to basic citizens’ rights. 
Second, Moroccan CSOs, having reached 116000 in the latest statistics issued by the 
Ministry of interior in 2014, are usually non-specialized: they intervene in different 
areas (social, cultural, sports ...) in an attempt to raise their chances of getting the 
funding provided by government departments and development agencies. Most of the 
associations, if we exclude human rights associations -not more than 400-, do not use a 
rights-based approach in their projects and initiatives.
Thirdly, regarding funding, it is noticed that most funds, especially from foreign 
agencies, are concentrated in the hands of relatively large associations who have the 
ability to access information and the technical capacity for project planning and 
implementation. As a matter of fact, statistics available from the national Treasury 
shows that, in 2010, only 1024 NGO among 75000 ones available benefitted from 
public funds. In 2011, only 1214 NGO out of 85000 had access to the NGO projects’ 
funds.
Fourth, despite efforts made by the concerned sectors, namely the Social Development 
Agency, with regards to strengthening the capacities of associations, and given the 
increasing number of Moroccan CSOs, and the few funding opportunities available, more 
efforts are needed to provide support at different levels: administrative and 
organizational support regarding their daily management, technical assistance for 
project design and management, financial support.
Fifth, one can also witness the relatively weak engagement of young people in civil 
society, which explains the need to increase the visibility of young actors in order to 
strengthen the impact of their actions and their organizations’ initiatives through
networking, public relations and media.
These observations served as a basis of the formulation of this project. They were 
addressed through the project’s PMOs and activities.
2. Project Objectives
The project was built around three Objectives:
 PM Objective 1: Strengthening FAFM’s capacity to become a regional ISO
 PM Objective 2: Building capacity of local women and youth NGOs to become local 
watchdogs
 PM Objective 3: Empower young activists to participate actively in public policy
3. Target (reached) population
Direct Benef
Target Achieved
Fem. Mal. Fem. Mal.
FAFM Staff
& Board Members 
& Administrative council & committee members
30
7
8
14
3
2
NGOs benefitting from the capacity building program 60 20 88 50
Young activists benefitting from capacity building programs
40 20 37 33
4. Logical Framework
III. Summary of Results & Outcomes
In its initial project application, FAFM has drawn an ambitious matrix of outcomes and 
results to achieve by the end of the project. The matrix was organized into four categories: 
content, structures, relations, and culture. Each row had specific outcomes, results and 
impact.
Below is a summary of the results achieved in comparison to the expected ones. It should be 
noted that the achievements put under “Impact” are outputs that are expected to have a 
“future” impact.
1. Content:
In terms of content, ENGAGE was a big push for FAFM to develop its internal procedures 
and issue different toolkits in addition to memorandums aiming at empowering women and 
families.
Expected Achieved
Product  Issuing 5 training 
toolkits,
 Producing reports 
and statistical 
notes,
 Toolkits :
a. Project Management toolkit (printed)
b. Territorial Public Policy Evaluation 
(printed)
c. The Role of Consultative Bodies: 
Issuing consultative advice (printed)
d. Monitoring and Evaluating Public 
Policy: an observatory toolkit (ready for 
print)
e. Advocacy: a CSO toolkit (ongoing)
f. Public-CSO partnership Brochure 
(ongoing)
 Issuing a GBV statistical report based on data 
from FAFM’s network CSOs
 Producing the 
young activists 
promotion movie
 Producing two video reports on youth 
programs (young Local Watchdogs + Young HR 
reporters)
 Developing a “Manuel de procedures”
 Developing internal M&E guide
Results  Producing progress 
reports,
 Producing final 
report
 Preparing quarterly reports on a timely manner
 Final Report (submitted)
Impact Participating in:
 Issuing public 
policies in favor of 
working women,
 Developing public 
policy that 
empowers women 
and protects 
families,
 Memorandum on civil society, women and 
family issues in the government program 2017-
2021
 A proposal note on the articles of Bill No. 10.16 
to change and complete the Criminal Code (on 
abortion)
 A proposal note for the legalization of remote 
work
 A proposal note for the amendment of law of 
finance that takes into account the situation of 
women and families in a vulnerable situation
 A memorandum in support of working families 
and CSOs through the draft Finance Law No. 
65.20 for the fiscal year 2021
 Issuing a parallel report to the combined 
government periodic report of the fifth and 
sixth periodic reports on the Convention on the 
Elimination of All Forms of discrimination 
Against Women
 Participation in the preparation of notes (within 
the framework of MIRLA)
a. Memorandum on the law regulating 
civil society
b. A note on the CSO tax framework
c. Memorandum on Public Consultation 
Law
2. Structures:
In terms of structure, ENGAGE was a turning point for FAFM.
Expected Achieved
Product  Preparing an information 
system
 Developing a centralized MIS for FAFM 
(financial, administrative, programs, 
HR…)
 Developing a simplified version of the 
MIS for CSOs in FAFM’s network
Results  Strengthen organisational 
capacity of FAFM,
 40 empowered NGOs
 FAFM’s OD score has been increasing 
steadily during the four years (PMO1 in 
the activities section)
 40 NGOs trained by FAFM (check 
activities)
Impact Participating in:
 Strengthening the 
governance in civil society 
management,
 Strengthening the Human 
Rights NGOs in Morocco,
 Empowering hearing 
centres & women NGOs
 Launching the National Observatoire on 
Women related Public Policies
 Providing a “petition writing” service 
through a team of graduates of the 
“Young Local watchdogs program”
 Creating a GBV monitoring cell (ongoing)
3. Relations:
During the lifetime of project ENGAGE, FAFM has gained a new positioning in the circle of 
Human Rights NGOs. It has acquired a stronger presence and louder voice as a 
women's rights’ advocate and civil society actor.
Expected Achieved
Product  Recruit 3 staff members
 Attend CSW conferences
 Organise meetings with 
personalities
 Hire 3 new staff members in addition to 
3 contractual ones (M&E officer, 
Advocacy Officer, Social Media 
technician)
 Organizing multi-stakeholder meetings 
(parliamentarian groups, 
ministers, institutions…)
Results  Launch regional advocacy 
networks,
 Increase the visibility of 
targeted young activists,
 Increase the young 
activists’ networks
 Launching “Chaml” thematic network 
(network of Hearing centers)
 Launching “Irtiqae” regional network 
(network of women NGOs in the region 
of Rabat-Sale-Kenitra)
 Preparation of 12 petitions presented to 
local authorities
Impact Participating in:
 Building capacities of local 
actors in advocacy and 
social accountability,
 Creating bridges between 
seasoned women activists 
and young civil society 
actors,
 Building a network of 
young activists concerned 
about social accountability
 Creating MIRLA: a dynamic to promote a 
CSO friendly legal environment in 
Morocco
 Young activists integrating local CSOs:
a. Young women advocate joining 
FAFM board
b. 8 women activists and local 
reporters integrating FAFM media 
team
c. 3 local watchdogs part of the 
observatory research team
d. 8 young activists in leadership 
positions in CSOs other than FAFM
4. Cultures:
Although it is difficult to measure the impact on the culture, FAFM could sense the 
beginning of important changes especially in its “Organizational Culture”.
Expected Achieved
Product  Empower 60 young civil society 
actors in the field of advocacy, policy 
making and women empowerment
 70 young actors were trained 
by FAFM, 28 of which 
integrated FAFM or other CSOs
 Improved organizational 
culture within FAFM’s team
Results  Improve the capacities of FAFM’s 
board in the field of public opinion 
building, social accountability, 
media...
 Base advocacy initiatives on field 
data
 12 petitions were prepared, 
with FAFM’s assistance
 7 petitions were actually 
presented to local authorities, 
only 1 of which was accepted
Impact Participating in:
 Diffusing a culture of accountability 
and transparency...
 Promote evidence based research
 Launching an internal “Audit 
and Control” unit within FAFM
5. Gender Mainstreaming:
FAFM works mainly on women and family issues which makes women its core concern. 
Regarding this specific project, FAFM was able to reach:
 29 out of the 40 assisted local CSOs were women or youth NGOs,
 77 out of the 113 members in the CSO capacity building activities were women,
 The young women advocates program was dedicated to young women (20),
 37 out of the 70 participants in the youth programs.
IV. Progress against indicators
PMO 1: Strengthening FAFM’s capacity to become a regional ISO
Indicator 1: Number of public policies introduced, adopted, repealed, 
changed or implemented consistent with citizen input (F).
This indicator measures FAFM production of petitions, motions and memorandums 
aiming at evaluating, changing, introducing, repealing existing or new public policy.
It also accounts for the petitions presented by local CSOs trained and assisted by 
FAFM (check indicator 5)
During the lifetime of the project, FAFM presented:
 A memorandum on civil society, women and family issues in the government 
program 2017-2021
 A proposal note on the articles of Bill No. 10.16 to change and complete the 
Criminal Code (on abortion)
 A proposal note for the legalization of Telework
 A proposal note for the amendment of law of finance that takes into account the 
situation of women and families in a vulnerable situation
 A memorandum in support of working families and CSOs through the draft 
Finance Law No. 65.20 for the fiscal year 2021
In addition to FAFM’s contribution, the project allowed 12 local CSOs to prepare 
petitions, 7 of which were actually presented to local councils and accounted for.
Indicator 2: Internal organizational and technical capacity building measured 
by OD
At the beginning of the project implementation, FAFM was assisted to assess its 
internal organizational capacities, via the Organizational Diagnosis Tool. The first 
measurement in 2017 served as a baseline against which the team measured its 
progress.
As shown in the graph below, FAFM did improve its skills. However, it could not 
reach the targeted scores. Though FAFM focused during the first year on capacity 
building solely, and tried during the next 3 years to improve on several 
organizational aspects, the progress, as measured by OD, did not reach the expected 
results. It should be noted that the organization has made important progress 
compared to its starting point. However, since the tool used, namely OD, addresses 
several aspects at once, the capacity building roadmap set at the beginning of the 
project could not be completed.
The several OD assessments, throughout the lifetime of the project, have shown 
progress in each and every OD indicator as detailed below.
a. Governance and Strategic planning
At the level of governance and management, FAFM was assisted by the USAID team 
to prepare a “Manuel de procedures” adapted to its work as an NGO. Further 
assistance by Counterpart team allowed FAFM to add certain procedures and further 
adapt them to FAFM’s mission.
At the level of strategic planning, the Forum reviewed its vision and mission during 
the 2017 General Assembly, defining the strategic axes of action, and the major 
issues that should frame its annual programs and projects. In this context, it 
benefited from Counterpart’s assistance to prepare the terms of reference for a 
training in this matter, addressed to FAFM team. Accordingly, an expert was hired to 
develop the plan.
b. Program Management and Quality Control
At the level of program design and planning, the forum developed its team 
capabilities in the field of preparing and designing programs through training. It also 
completed a “Project Management Guide '' that was shared with FAFM’s network of 
CSOs during the network’s council. It is now available at FAFM’s office for any CSO in 
need of assistance, namely those working in similar fields of action of FAFM.
As for monitoring, evaluating programs and measuring impact, the forum was able to 
enhance its capabilities and acquire a set of practical tools for data analysis in order 
to effectively evaluate activities and programs, after benefiting from the training 
course organized by USAID, and Technical support from the Counterpart team. In 
fact, FAFM team is now capable of developing a monitoring and evaluation plan 
(MELP) for each of its projects. FAFM also has an M&E reference guide that serves as 
a basis for monitoring and evaluating all its programs and projects.
A new centralized Management Information System:
FAFM developed an MIS through work with an external IT company. The system 
allows FAFM staff to perform all the administrative, financial and programmatic 
tasks. Among the modules that are available in the system:
 Financial management,
 Accounting,
 Human resources management,
 Meeting Management,
 Project management,
 Network management.
Instead of benefitting from the system by itself, FAFM managed to develop modules 
that are suitable to the work of its local partners and allows them to use it for their 
own management. Now, with assistance from FAFM team, local CSOs that are part of 
FAFM’s network can have their own account in the system to manage their projects 
and collect its data. Since the CSO accounts are linked to the centralized system, 
FAFM can have access to the data gathered. With more CSOs joining the system, 
FAFM would be able to issue thematic reports and produce evidence based advocacy 
initiatives
FAFM’s IS is more than a management tool. It is a means for empowerment as it 
allows the team to develop its organizational skills while promoting its networking 
and data and evidence gathering.
c. Mediation and service provision
With the assistance of Counterpart International, FAFM acquired a team specialized 
in organizational diagnosis using the OD tool. This team carried out pre- and post￾organizational diagnosis for all the 40 CSOs having benefited from the program. With 
a vision to strengthen the capacities of CSOs in local advocacy, the OD served as the 
basis for the formulation of the CSO capacity building & training program (more 
details in PMO2 activities section).
As for advocacy, the forum was able to develop the capabilities and skills of its staff 
and board members thanks to a set of training programs on advocacy and public 
policy evaluation. It was assisted by Counterpart team to conduct an advocacy 
capacity diagnosis. This allowed it to advocate for a range of issues, whether 
individually or from within MIRLA movement. In preparation for its next general 
assembly, and based on these outcomes, FAFM is preparing an advocacy roadmap 
for the next mandate 2021-2024.
The forum is also working on preparing an advocacy guide to be used as a reference 
and practical tool for the forum and civil society organizations.
FAFM’s ability to build the capacity of local CSOs and its leadership in advocating for 
women’s rights are the main pillars of its new role as an ISO
d. Financial and accounting management & Human and Financial 
resources
FAFM developed a “Manuel de Procédures'' that includes financial and accounting 
management procedures. FAFM has a vision of developing it further in order to have 
a “Référentiel de Gestion'' that contains, in addition to the usual administrative 
aspects, elements related to FAFM’s core mission: advocacy, project management, 
sub-grants management, networking, training and service provision.
FAFM was able to enhance its human resources in order to ensure the effectiveness 
of its operations. In this context, the team was enriched by the hiring or contracting 
of the following positions:
 A capacity building officer,
 An M&E officer,
 An advocacy expert,
 a social media technician.
On the other hand, FAFM succeeded in building the capacities of its staff through 
training and technical assistance, whether from Counterpart international team or 
TALM, in the fields of administrative and financial management, monitoring and 
evaluation, advocacy, project management...
As for safety and security plans, FAFM has adopted an information system to protect 
data and systems, and optimize data management.
The forum was also equipped with new technical and administrative equipment that 
met its mission’s requirements to ensure greater effectiveness and project success.
e. External relations and the communication system
FAFM was able to strengthen its relations with various bodies, ensuring a permanent 
presence and strong suggestions at various stages with different stakeholders.
FAFM media team was able to develop the contents of its Facebook page by 
developing a new grid of social and human rights programs of different 
types: discussion, counseling, awareness raising. This allowed FAFM to reach out to 
different groups of experts, civil society actors and elected officials and institutions. 
In the meantime, FAFM is finalizing the design of a new website to be launched in the 
coming months, which will contribute to strengthening its brand name.
The forum developed its communication strategy through which it could develop its 
relations with partners and the media. A media committee was established, and was 
joined by graduates from youth programs, who were able to contribute their creative 
ideas to marketing FAFM activities and projects.
With regard to networking, FAFM was able to enhance its capabilities in the field. 
During the second year of the project, it launched a thematic network, gathering 
hearing centers at the national level. The network is now established legally and 
operating as an independent entity that works in partnership with FAFM in certain 
projects. During the last year of the project, FAFM finalized its strategy for regional 
networking, and launched a first regional network: Irtiqae, a network for women 
NGOs in the region of Rabat-Sale-Kenitra. Irtiqae is meant to be the first in a series of 
12 regional network into which all of FAFM national network will be “re-organized” 
promoting regionalization.
Indicator 3: Number of petitions addressed to local authorities by FAFM
FAFM prepared a national petition on the “Promotion of the rights of working 
women'' with the aim of enhancing social protection for working women in the 
public and private sector. An expert was contracted to accompany members of the 
committee, as well as preparing the petition document and its detailed 
memorandum.
After selecting the “owners of the initiative” and appointing the petition committee, 
as dictated by the law, the petition’s preparatory committee proceeded to hold its 
meetings in order to finalize the petition and develop a communication plan for the 
advocacy campaign. It also began to prepare audio-visuals. The main messages to be 
conveyed by the video were:
 conveying the experience of working mothers,
 suggesting measures for better careers for women,
 calling for the need for the work laws to be appropriate and to answer the 
growing societal needs for the participation of women in work, whether in 
the private or public sector.
However, due to the current conditions in the country, the forum was not able to 
launch the petition and gather the required signatures to present it to the 
government. The board then decided to restructure the petition and present it as a 
memorandum to the head of government (ongoing effort).
In the coming days, the forum will work on adapting the petition and submitting it to 
the head of government and parliamentary teams within the horizon of holding 
meetings with the relevant bodies to advocate for it.
In return, as a contribution to the public debate about the post-quarantine phase, 
based on its belief in the important role that working women and employees play in 
advancing the country, on the one hand, and the role of the family as the basic 
building block of society, FAFM issued an electronic petition to legalize telework. It is 
FAFM’s conviction that the adoption of Telework will contribute to relieving the 
pressure on working women and enabling them to reconcile their professional and
family tasks, while developing their professional performance. In fact, telework 
could actually be a suitable response to a set of societal transformations and 
challenges. It could:
 address the needs of an important segment of workers,
 provide the opportunity to work according to various formulas that may open 
opportunities for multiple job positions
 have flexibility that will contribute to absorbing a significant percentage of 
unemployment,
 open new horizons for the development of a number of professions and 
services.
Indicator 4: Number of multi-stakeholder meetings organized to provide 
platform for interaction between GoM/CSOs/private Sector in Public Policy
In partnership with the four other ISOs, within the framework of MIRLA, FAFM held 
a total of 32 meetings with parliamentary groups teams, with the officials of the 
Ministry in charge of relations with parliament and civil society, with the committee 
of the Interior, local communes and infrastructure in the House of Councilors... 
advocating for the reform of the legal framework governing civil society, and for the 
adoption of a law on volunteering, a law on public consultation, a law on public 
charity and a transparent budget. In this context, 6, 10, 6 meetings were held 
consecutively in 2018, 2019 and 2020.
Within the framework of the youth program, field visits were organized to a group of 
official institutions such as Parliament, the National Council for Human Rights, the 
Ministry of Civil Society and Relations with Parliament, the Rabat-Salé-Kenitra 
region, the Kingdom's Mediator Foundation, and the Public Finance Control 
Committee of the House of Representatives. The aim of the visits was to give the 
Young Local Watchdogs a first hand experience being civil society actors and 
meeting with a variety of decision makers in order to discuss issues related to public 
policy, public finances, human rights…
PMO 2: Building capacity of local women and youth NGOs to become local 
watchdogs
Indicator 5: Percentage of CSOs supported by FAFM who have strengthened 
their organizational capacities, as measured by the simplified DO
As shown in the graph below, despite its multiple efforts, FAFM could not reach the 
set target regarding building the capacities of local CSOs. This was due to two main 
reasons:
 Time allocated: a 1 year training and assistance was not enough to produce 
tangible change in all partner CSOs, especially that most of the 40 CSOs were 
small rural ones, with no offices nor staff.
 Multi-target assistance: the training provided to the CSOs, especially the 
first cohort, addressed multiple elements: advocacy, communication, financial 
and administrative management, project management… This diversity of 
elements made it difficult for both the CSOs and FAFM team to achieve the 
target. Given the short time of the program, it would have been better to limit 
the areas for development.
In fact, with the second cohort, FAFM’s team limited the scope of assistance 
(advocacy and financial and administrative management). The positive impact can 
be shown through the graph. Although the number of CSOs increased, 27 in the 
second cohort instead of 13 in the first one, a higher rate was achieved.
To achieve this indicator, FAFM launched a call for applications to benefit from a CSO 
capacity building program in local advocacy: 40 CSOs in the Rabat-Sale-Kenitra 
region.
The forum adopted an approach to enhancing the capacities of associations based on 
three main components: organizational diagnosis, training sessions and technical 
assistance.
a. Organizational diagnosis of CSOs:
FAFM organized a training workshop to form an Organizational Diagnostic Team. 
This session was a chance for FAFM team and the representatives of partner 
CSOs to get acquainted with the OD tool and its objectives, to then start making 
diagnoses for the CSOs in order to assess their needs at the organizational and 
technical level. Based on the results of this diagnosis, an adapted training plan 
has been established responding to CSOs needs.
After polling the opinion of the beneficiary associations, 81% of them considered 
that the process was highly participatory.
In terms of the training plan, 88% of them saw that the capacity building plan 
included clearly formulated goals.
50% of the CSOs participating in the survey believe that their capacity building 
needs were fully integrated into the training plan, while 46% believe that their 
needs were partially integrated.
As for the achievement of the association’s goals from the training, 58% stated 
that their goals were fully met.
b. Training sessions:
The first group of CSOs (13) benefitted from 8 training sessions on the following 
topics:
 Strategic planning for CSOs,
 Project Management,
 Networking and Partnership building,
 Team Building & Conflict Management,
 Knowledge Management,
 Administrative and financial management,
 Resource Mobilization and financial sustainability,
 Communication for Development
The CSOs of the second cohort (27) benefitted from 5 training sessions on the 
following topics:
 Results based Management,
 Partnership building & resource mobilization,
 Monitoring and Evaluating public policies,
 Participatory democracy and civil society advocacy,
 Administrative and financial management,
 Financial Management for CSOs,
During the training period, CSOs managed to develop their managerial and 
organizational capabilities and strengthen governance within their organization. The 
survey showed that 58% of the CSOs believe their abilities were strengthened (well 
or very well).
As for the institutionalization of M&E within the organizations, being an important 
aspect of project management and governance, 50% of partner CSOs have either 
already established or are establishing an M&E system. The other half faced trouble 
doing so.
15% of the associations managed to emerge well as actors in participatory democracy, 
while 19% of them started trying to exercise this role. In fact, remarkable progress was 
observed in terms of advocacy, as a number of CSOs submitted petitions to the 
territorial councils to defend local cases.
As for the design and implementation of advocacy initiatives monitoring local public 
policies, the capacities of 31% of the CSOs have improved well or very well, while 42% 
felt they “somewhat” improved.
c. Follow up visits:
Conducting visits and meetings to partner associations after benefiting from the 
training program in order to find out what knowledge and skills have been acquired 
during the training stages and the extent of transfer of knowledge and skills and 
come up with future recommendations to develop their work.
Indicator 6: Number of petitions addressed to local authorities by local CSOs
In parallel with the training program, based on CSOs' needs, FAFM organized four 
workshops on participatory democracy and civil society advocacy in order to assist 
the CSOs in preparing petitions to be filed with local councils.
The CSOs were able to learn about the constitutional and legal framework for 
participatory democracy and the role of CSOs in public policy formulation. They 
could also touch upon:
 Local public policy monitoring
 Competencies of local councils
 Conditions for acceptance of petitions
 Skills and techniques for drafting petitions and memorandums
 Organizing advocacy campaigns
 Developing advocacy strategies
 Resource mobilization
 Networking & building alliances
The outcome of this endeavor was the preparation of 12 local petitions on various 
local issues, 7 of which were submitted to the territorial communes. These latter’s 
interactions varied given the “novelty” of such exercise. Some communes rejected 
the petitions due to non-compliance with technical conditions, others took measures 
to deal directly with the issue, while one commune accepted the petition and 
discussed and adopted the subject petition in its meeting.
PMO 3 : Empower young activists to participate actively in public policy
Indicator 7: The ratio of participants having acquired new capacities through 
young capacity building programs
The project aimed at training 60 young civil actors and building their capacities 
regarding advocacy. To do so, FAFM designed 3 different training programs. The 
target (70%) was met in all three programs.
 Young Women Advocates
 Young Local Watchdogs
 Young Human Rights Activists
a. Young Women Advocates
During 2018, 20 young women advocates were able to benefit from 9 training 
sessions on the following topics:
 international human rights mechanisms,
 institutional and legal framework for women's rights in Morocco,
 civil society organizations,
 project management,
 advocating for women’s rights: producing petitions,
 monitoring and evaluating public policies
The response of 95% of the participants revealed that there was a compatibility 
between the training content and the age group, educational level and scientific 
specialization. This increased the transfer of knowledge among participants, 
explaining the particular high ratio illustrated in the graph above.
About 65% of the participants expressed that the training contributed moderately to 
the development of their advocacy capabilities, and 35% of them said that they have 
contributed well.
With regard to the relationship with the public decision, it becomes clear according 
to the results that the participation of young people has become a reality that most 
of them aspire to, thanks to the roles assigned to them, through advisory bodies for 
youth and bodies for public consultation.
It is certain that the relationship of young people to the public decision fluctuates 
between influence and participation, which is the same rate expressed as 48% each, 
leaving a small minority, about 4%, who believes that the public decision is in the 
hands of institutions that cannot be interfered with.
It is also evident from the answers of the participants in the training that they were 
able to acquire advocacy tools and strategies, to carry out an advocacy campaign and 
to mobilize support to influence the public decision, and to present memoranda. This 
is reflected by the 73.91 participants who expressed their ability to organize 
advocacy campaigns.
In fact, conducting an advocacy campaign is not an easy task. It requires 
mechanisms, techniques and identification of decision-makers, a matter which an 
important percentage of 26.09 believed in their ability to do.
In parallel to the training program, young women advocates were able to participate 
in field visits to a group of official institutions such as the Parliament and the 
National Council for Human Rights. They also visited some civil bodies such as Al 
Karama Association for Women Development in Tangiers and got acquainted with 
the association’s women shelter, and the Atlas Women Network in Errachidia city 
and the Association for Family Awareness and Reform in Erfoud City to closely 
identify the nature of the work of these CSOs and public policies related to women.
In addition, a series of open meetings were held with civil and political personalities. 
The aim was to empower these young women with the mechanisms and skills to 
develop their personalities, advocate for women's issues, and get closely acquainted 
with the experiences of these personalities and to learn about the difficulties that 
they lived through.
b. Young Local Watchdogs
The program enables young women and men to:
 enhance their capacities in advocacy,
 acquire the skills of analyzing and evaluating public policies,
 advocate for societal issues using participatory democracy mechanisms 
(petitions, petitions, public consultation ...)
 developing projects to serve civil society issues
The participants attended 9 training sessions on various topics:
 Legal framework for policy evaluation,
 Participatory democracy and monitoring public policy
 Participatory Budgeting
 Public policy M&E and fighting corruption
 Results based planning
 Advocacy and communication
At the outset of the project, the participant had developed a few very interesting 
projects:
 an electronic platform for GBV reporting,
 a mapping for actors in the field of childhood,
 environment friendly women cooperatives,
 an observatory for territorial public policies,
 the preparation of a guide for monitoring and evaluating territorial policies.
The last two projects were actually adopted and implemented (being implemented) 
by FAFM.
c. Young Human Rights Reporters
After benefiting from a group of training courses, young human rights reporters 
were able to develop their knowledge in the field of audiovisual, media and 
communication related to human rights. They get acquainted with the national and 
international mechanisms of the human rights system in addition to developing their 
communication capabilities and competencies as civil actors. The pre-and post￾training assessments have shown that 81% of the young participants have developed 
these skills through the training.
These young people have been able to produce articles and informational capsules 
on various human rights and social issues:
 the family under quarantine,
 rights and freedoms in the time of the Coronavirus,
 GBV: another epidemic in the time of the Corona,
 rural women ... are forgotten even in the time of the Corona,
 the marriage of minors, ...
As part of the capacity building program, the participants had the technical support 
of a professional audio-visual production company and were able to produce 3 films 
about:
 women working in the agricultural sector,
 the situation of migrant women in Morocco,
 girls with disabilities
Indicator 8: Number of young participants who integrated local CSOs
Joining FAFM:
A group of graduates of the youth programs were able to engage in FAFM's 
structures and activities. In fact, a graduate of the young women advocates joined 
FAFM’s board. Eight (8) young men and women made FAFM’s new media team. 
Through this committee they were able to contribute to the preparation and 
elaboration of a group of forum activities. They worked on preparing audio-visual 
capsules, legislative petitions and technical papers. Four (4) out of the (25) Young 
Local Watchdogs contributed to the preparation of FAFM’s “Monitoring and 
Evaluation of Territorial policy guide” under the supervision of FAFM’s advocacy 
expert.
Few of the graduates are members of the research team of the National Observatory 
on Women related Public Policies.
Affiliation with local associations:
Eight young women and men joined local youth associations, while two were able to 
join human rights organizations, three in women's associations, and five in other 
CSOs. Eight out of these 18 youngsters hold responsibility inside the CSOs they 
volunteer for.
Additional Outcomes
The National Observatory on Women related Public Policy
The forum established an observatory of public policies related to women. During 
the lifetime of the project, FAFM organized two preparatory workshops for the 
establishment of the observatory, the first of which was devoted to laying out the 
features of the strategic plan of the observatory and preparing a plan of action, while 
the second was devoted to studying the administrative and financial organization of 
the observatory, and defining a list of members of the research team of the 
observatory. Right after that, efforts to strengthen the capacities of the research 
team began: Two training sessions were organized, during which the team was able 
to acquire mechanisms and tools for evaluating public policies and to identify the 
approach and problems associated with this field.
In addition, a public policy monitoring and evaluation guide for the observatory was 
prepared as a practical reference for its work.
The forum contributed to the establishment of the observatory, but it will develop 
into an independent monitoring body. It is expected to be officially launched at the 
end of 2021.
Program to strengthen the capacities of the advisory bodies of the Council 
of the Rabat-Salé-Kenitra region:
In the interest of the FAFM to contribute to the fulfillment of the constitutional roles 
assigned to civil society, and in the context of strengthening cooperation between 
civil society and elected institutions in the field of activating mechanisms for 
participatory democracy, FAFM launched a training program to enhance the 
capacities of the advisory bodies of the Council of the Rabat Sal-Kenitra region 
(Commission on Equality and Equal Opportunities, Commission on Youth affairs). 
The training touched upon aspects related to the legal framework for the work of 
these bodies and the required knowledge framework as well as the practical skills to 
be possessed. It was made of three training sessions on the following topics:
 advisory bodies and public policies at the regional level,
 the roles and functions of advisory bodies in relation to the region’s 
competencies,
 Promoting the roles and functions of the advisory bodies: Presenting the 
advisory opinion,
The training benefitted 19 members of the two bodies. And the program culminated 
with the preparation of a guide on the roles of advisory bodies and providing the 
advisory opinion
V. Recommended Good Practices
During the lifetime of the project, FAFM has developed some good practices, ones that it 
will incorporate into its work and future projects.
1.Organizational Diagnosis:
Prior to the second CSOs capacity building program, FAFM conducted an OD (an 
adapted version) for each and every CSO. It then used the outcome of the diagnosis to 
determine the training plan. Therefore, the suggested training plan was in line with 
CSOs needs and expectations, as expressed in the section on Indicator 5. The conduction 
of OD post-training program allows for the measurement of any evolution that took 
place in the CSO’s performance.
In addition to its technical use, the OD is a strong empowerment tool, as it increases 
CSOs’ engagement in the process from the beginning in a very active manner.
2. Simplified/Adapted OD
After the evaluation of its experience with the first cohort, and the limitations found in 
the use the OD tool as presented by Counterpart International, FAFM team decided to 
scale it down in order to adapt it to the target CSOs. For this purpose, FAFM’s team 
discussed the tool internally, in light of lessons learned from the first capacity building 
program, and determined aspects to keep and the ones to remove. In fact, FAFM’s 
experience with the first cohort resulted in the establishment of detailed capacity 
building plans for all assisted CSOs. This was meant to serve as a roadmap to plan the 
CSOs capacity building efforts. Instead, a feeling of frustration was felt among CSOs who 
expected rapid progress. Therefore, given the limited time scope of the second 
program, it was decided to focus on a limited number of development areas (project 
management, M&E, basics of financial management, and Advocacy) in which progress 
could be made through the one year training program.
The thought behind the selection of the elements was that for a CSO to conduct local 
advocacy, it needs to have basic organizational skills. FAFM assistance focused on basic 
elements:
 Making an action plan based on its mission,
 Tracking its finances,
 Evaluating its activities,
 Documenting all of the above to produce annual reports,
 Designing and implementing local advocacy initiatives.
3. Participatory project development with youth
One of the important best practices developed by FAFM team during ENGAGE project 
was the involvement of youth in the design of their capacity building programs.
Right after the selection process, a focus group is organized with the presence of all 
participants and the assistance of a facilitator. During this one day event, FAFM’s vision 
is presented and youth expectations are discussed and training objectives are jointly 
determined.
4. M&E model document
Assisted by Counterpart International team, FAFM developed its first monitoring, 
evaluating and learning plan. Inspired by the MELP, FAFM team then developed a 
simplified M&E system adapted for the rest of its smaller scale projects.
Now, FAFM team prepares and M&E plan at the beginning with each project, regardless 
of the funding party’s requirement.
VI. Lessons Learned
1. Capacity building is a long term endeavor. Though FAFM tried for 3 years to 
improve on several organizational aspects, the progress, as measured by OD, did 
not reach the expectations. In fact, the capacity building roadmap set at the 
beginning of the project could not be implemented since it addressed too many 
organizational elements at once. In order to reach actual progress, FAFM decided 
to focus on fewer elements at a time, dressing a multi-year capacity building 
program, to be achieved in parallel to its different projects.
2. The “Manuel de procedure” is a living document. Since the beginning of the 
program, FAFM could not reach a “final” version of the manual. It used 
“operational” versions, as it was constantly improving it, to be adapted to its 
work nature and to the capabilities of its staff. FAFM team finally reached the 
belief that a “Manuel de procedures” is a living document, one that is always 
being improved and adapted to the growth of the organization.
3. Assisting CSOs in preparing and presenting petitions does not result in automatic 
presentation of the petitions. In fact, in FAFM’s experience, 40 CSOs were assisted 
and provided with the same technical assistance, with an expert made available 
for direct assistance. Even then, only 12 CSOs actually produced petitions, of 
which only 7 were actually presented to the councils.
4. Restraining advocacy to petition presentation is not empowering to local CSOs. In 
fact, CSOs could feel powerless especially since local councils are not always 
responsive. In ENGAGE’s case, only 1 out of the 7 petitions presented to the local 
councils was accepted.
This is due to several reasons:
 Novelty of the exercise for both parties,
 Psychological hurdle that needs to be crossed: not all CSOs were ready to 
launch advocacy initiatives. They were used to their awareness raising 
initiatives.
 Local councils negative or absent feedback
5. Limits of ICTs: ICTs are great tools to use in order to enrich any learning experience. 
However, they can’t be a substitute for human face to face interaction. During COVID 
lockdown, FAFM turned into remote learning. However, after 3 months, the attendees 
started losing interest. Even youth who are usually tech savvy and more into ICTs than 
older generations could not keep up with 100% remote training.
VII. Sustainability: Multiplier Effect
The design of ENGAGE project considered several elements for sustainability. In fact, the 
project was first designed as a pilot test.
1. Regional Networking:
Through ENGAGE project, FAFM established its networking vision: its national 
network is to be reorganized into 12 regional networks promoting regionalization. 
FAFM assisted a number of CSOs, graduates of its capacity building program, to 
launch “Irtiqae” the network of the Rabat-Sale-Kenitra. The network is legally 
established and open for any CSOs sharing the network’s mission to join. The 
experience was documented in a toolkit that is available to be shared with CSOs 
planning to launch other networks. FAFM is now discussing with CSOs in Casa-Settat 
region and in Souss to launch regional networks too.
2. Acquiring Operational Tools:
a. OD tool: FAFM team has mastered the tool. It is now considered a best 
practice to be employed in different projects.
b. M&E system – FAFM internally developed useful M&E tools that it started 
using in its other projects. The M&E plan is not only a planning and 
evaluation tool but also a decision making one, allowing for the design of 
future projects.
c. Produced Guides – The guides and toolkits detailed in the outcomes section 
are to be shared with the national network
The training toolkits will serve also to help other non-targeted NGOs to benefit 
from capacity building during and after the lifespan of the project.
d. The information system implemented is a very strong empowering tool. The 
MIS allows for better organization performance. However, data gathered from 
local CSOs will be the basis of projects and advocacy initiatives which are 
adapted to the real needs of citizens. This increases the chances of those 
projects being funded by other organizations.
3. The National Observatory for Women related Public Policy. FAFM assisted in the 
launching of the observatory which is now ready to start producing its first report.
4. The youth programs helped empower the targeted civil society actors, increase their 
visibility and widen their horizons. The opportunities they had meeting political and civil 
actors, attending meetings, being mentored... are all learning experiences to be shared with 
the local CSOs they have joined.
Appendices
Appendice 1: Examples of Activity Brochures




Appendice 2: ENGAGE in a Nutshell



Appendice 3: ENGAGE in Pictures
ENGAGE Launching Event
Building FAFM’s organizational capacity (indicator 2)
Manuel de procédures Guide Gestion de Projets
Développement d’un système d’information
Developing External Relations and Communication
Indicator 1: Number of public policies introduced, adopted, repealed, changed or 
implemented consistent with citizen input (F).
Indicator 3 : Number of petitions presented to authorities by FAFM
Meetings of the committee of the National Petition on Employed Women
Launching the Irtiqae Regional Network
Building local CSOs capacities on advocacy
40 Organizational diagnosis
Training sessions in favor of the CSOs


ورشات لتقديم العرائض

Local Young Women Advocates
Training Sessions
FIELD VISITS
Young Local Watchdogs program


Young Human Rights Reporters program



YOUTH ENGAGEMENT
Additional Outputs
The national Observatoire on women related public policy
Consultative bodies capacity building program