GOVERNANCE FUNTIONNING

The SRF Governance is composed of 4 distinct entities : The Governance Board, the Fund Management Unit, the Evaluation Committee, and the Grievance Committee.

SHARED GOVERNANCE,
STRONGER PARTNERSHIPS

Collective decision-making for greater accountability

The SRF is committed to upholding the highest standards of conduct in all its activities and responsibilities, which specifically includes preventing all forms of potential or actual conflicts of interest. Its governance structure, systems, and responsibilities have been designed to prevent, mitigate, and manage all potential or actual conflicts of interest

I dream of seeing the SRF fund a large-scale, multi-country project, entirely designed and implemented by a consortium of national Sahelian NGOs. The SRF has all the technical and political resources needed to be the first to bring about this systemic change. M. Yembuani Yves Ouoba - Outgoing Vice President, SRF Board of Directors; Executive Director, Tin Tua, Burkina Faso

The Board of Directors page highlights various opportunities for international, national, and local NGOs to join the SRF Board. Stay updated on openings and requirements to contribute to our mission and drive impactful humanitarian efforts in the Sahel region.

A balanced and transparent governance model ensures integrity and shared ownership.

Board with equal seats for INGOs, N/LNGOs and donors (4/4/4).

Strong checks to prevent conflicts of interest and guarantee donor accountability.

Fair resource sharing, systematic redistribution of the 7% admin costs.

The Fund Director serves as the secretary without being a member of the Board of Directors. Board members are not compensated

Composition

The SRF board is composed of the following (non-remunerated) members: 

Permanent members :

Representative of the Host
Donors with funds operationalized by the SRF (1 seat per donor, up to a total of 4 seats)
One observer

Non-permanent members :

3 international INGO operational presence
in project areas
4 seats for the representation of national organisations
Invited observer(s)

Roles and responsibilities of the SRF board

Discuss, suggest amendments and approve SRF programme strategy
Discuss, suggest amendments and approve the SRF framework documents
Discuss, suggest amendments and approve the calls for proposals proposed
Approbation of the selection of projects proposals based on evaluations and briefs from the Evaluation Committee and any comments from the relevant country-level working and coordination groups
Oversight on projects’ progress
Management of most serious risks
Context analysis on emerging crisis and trends
Engage in external relations, communication, advocacy and fundraising initiatives

The host organization ensures that the FMU fulfills its mandate.
The FMU is currently hosted by DRC but enjoys a certain degree of autonomy from it. The FMU reports to the Regional Executive Director and is independent of DRC’s operations in the countries of the region. The FMU remains accountable to DRC headquarters regarding risk management and works closely with it to develop internal frameworks and policies to enable effective fund management.The FMU consists of a team recruited and hosted by the host organization, with the exception of key positions where donors may participate in the recruitment process.The FMU team reports to the Fund Director, who is under the direct supervision of DRC’s Regional Executive Director. The Fund Director also has a functional reporting line to the Chair of the SRF Board of Directors.

Role and responsibilities of the FMU

Developing SRF frameworks and calls for proposals
Developing the Operations Manual
Developing SRF calls for proposals
Compliant selection of concept notes and proposals
Setting up the evaluation committee
Vetting and due diligence of partners
Financial and contractual management
Monitoring and evaluation of projects funded
Document and disseminate learning
Risk monitoring and reporting to the SRF board
Communication and advocacy initiatives
Context analysis on emerging crisis and key trends
Secretariat of the board
Resource mobilisation

The Project Evaluation Committee is accountable to the SRF board, and the selection of its members is discussed and endorsed by the SRF board.

Roles and responsibilities of the Evaluation Committee

The role and responsibilities of the Project Evaluation Committee are to evaluate each application and to provide evaluations and recommendations according to an evaluation grid proposed by the FMU and approved by the SRF evaluation committee. The evaluation committee evaluates project proposals and submits evaluations with marks, a narrative for each mark and an overall recommendation for review, discussion, and decision-making of the SRF board.

Composition

The Project Evaluation Committee is composed of:

Technical experts from the host organization, including the FMU.
Technical experts from donors who may or may not be funding the SRF.
Technical experts from other humanitarian partners (INGO or NNGO) with no conflict of interest in the selection outcome
External technical consultants

Composition

Permanent members (The Chair of the Grievance Committee (FCDO) & The Vice Chair (DRC Safeguarding and CoC adviser)

Non permanent members : Technical experts from organisations members of the SRF board (not receiving funds from the SRF) and Third-party experts on leading high-level and sensitive investigations

Roles and responsibilities of the Grievance Committee

The Grievance Committee is a permanent mechanism which shall decide on what action is to be taken with reports of grievances, complaints, concern and potential conflicts of interest related to the functioning of the SRF and its integrity.

Contact : grievance@sahelregionalfund.org

Download the governance framework

Revision Du Cadre De Gouvernance 2026 Governance Framework SRF 2026