A $5 million capacity building fund for multicultural organisations which was promised in the Victorian Multicultural Review has opened for submissions.
Minister for Multicultural Affairs Ingrid Stitt has today launched the Multicultural Capacity Building Program, as per a recommendation made within last year’s landmark Victorian Multicultural Review to offer more support to sustain grassroots groups.
“Grassroots multicultural organisations are the lifeblood of our communities – we’re backing them in with extra funding so they can continue supporting our multicultural communities,” Minister Stitt said at the launch.
The one-year Multicultural Capacity Building Program will offer grants of up to $10,000, $100,000 or $400,000 to emerging and established organisations to build their sustainability and connectivity.
This includes day-to-day operations like IT support and business planning, and equipment purchases, as well as mentoring and leadership training.
In addition, the department has pledged to prioritise rural and regional activities and has also provided a list of new and emerging ethnic communities who will be prioritised under the grant.
Developed in consultation with the VMC, the list includes Myanmar, Afghanistan, Pasifika and Pashtun communities.
The grant guidelines show the first deployment of the Victorian Values and Social Cohesion Commitment statement, another recommendation of the Review which attracted some uncertainty.
Applicants are required to ‘read, understand and make employees, contractors and volunteers aware’ of the statements, and to ‘acknowledge that [their] conduct…adheres to the Victorian Values statement and the Commitment to Social Cohesion.’
The statement also appears on the first page of the application form on the grant portal. It does not appear on any of the other open grant applications.
These statements haven’t yet been added to the Victorian Common Funding Agreement template, which grantees must sign when they receive the grant. Equally, how the Commitment will be enforced during the life of the grant is unknown at this stage.
Minister Stitt looks forward to supporting more community-led action through the Multicultural Capacity Building Program, which will be awarded at her discretion and factor in assessment recommendations from the Premier and Cabinet.
“Victoria has a proud history of multiculturalism and diversity, but we know that it needs to be nurtured and supported. This funding helps build the strong foundations to ensure that all Victorians can fully enjoy our state’s vibrant and inclusive society,” she said.
The grant is open for applications until February 19.
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