CSR Policy
Introduction
Payana means origin (Journey) we see it as The Journey towards equality. A group
of people who have gone through life facing many barriers due to their gender
expression and sexual preference/orientation, decided to take this as our journey. A
journey that we know will have many hardships; a journey that will strengthen us; a
journey that will culminate in success for all those who accompany us through this
continuous journey.
The thought which started in early 2008 finally became a reality when members of
Payana decided to registered as a society under The Karnataka Societies
Registration Act. 1960 and got registered in December 14th 2009.
The members of PAYANA are proud of their sexuality and lives with this in dignity. It
is with the desire to extend this pride, dignity and to celebrate this empowerment and
trying to achieve the goal of Payana “Too see a world where all Sexuality/Gender
minorities and other marginalized communities are free from Stigma/Discrimination,
where all are equal and have equal opportunity to progress in their individual
capacity”
PAYANA in its Rise for Equality and Journey aims to create a democratic space
where we have the freedom to express ourselves for who we are and be recognized
and heard. The members of PAYANA feel that their empowerment as activists needs
to be celebrated and expanded. Towards this we will undertake to establish
implementation of sexuality minority community’s’ ideas and thereby create
independence and democracy within the community.
Rationale and purpose of the policy
PAYANA is looking to expand its funding sources that will enable the
organization to undertake projects and initiatives with increased depth and
sustainability. This will help bring about long-term changes on the ground in
the eight thematic areas where it works. With shift in funding patterns both
internationally and nationally, Payana wishes to alter its dependency on any
single source of funding and open up to multiple sources of funding both big
and small for the benefit of the communities it works for and enables the
fulfillment of its long-term vision.
Additionally, the Companies Act (2013) in its statutory provisions, has made
CSR mandatory for companies with a net worth of '500 crore or more,
turnover of at least '1,000 crore and net profit of at least '5 crore. The
requirement: spending at least 2 percent of their profits on CSR and
constituting a separate committee on their board. The law, implemented
from April, makes India the only country with legislated CSR. In this context,
Payana’s decision seems most relevant.
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PAYANA with its scientific programming approach, technical expertise and
high standards of accountability and transparency can be an asset for CSR
partnerships. It aims to reach out to Corporates that are looking to partner with
NGOs that have the capacity to execute complex programs and bring change.
The purpose of this policy is to lay down guidelines and mechanisms
for undertaking CSR programs and to make known to all
stakeholders our approach to CSR. The policy outlines our intentions
to partner with companies that seek support to contribute to social
development which are aligned with local and national priorities.
Objectives of the policy
The CSR policy has the following objectives: To clearly state Payana’s approach and guiding principles to partner
with CSR initiatives To explain Payana’s procedures for managing partnership enquiries To explain Payana’s reporting and fund management procedures and
processes that will guide these partnerships
Components of the CSR policy
The policy has the following components: Policy statement Applicability and scope of the policy Implementation roles and responsibilities Review and evaluation statement Communication statement Policy details
o Thematic areas
o Target groups and geography
o Approach and guiding principles for CSR partnerships
o Criteria for collaborations and partnerships
o Branding
o Pre-partnership meetings
o Procedures
POLICY STATEMENT
Payana believes in forming successful partnerships with private sector and
corporates to add value to its work, expand its reach, strengthen its impact
and sustain its efforts at scale. Payana lays down clear standards to guide the
process of initiation, implementation and conclusion of the programs funded
by the private sector.
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APPLICABILITY AND SCOPE OF THE POLICY
This policy applies to Payana to identify most pertinent CSR opportunities that
are aligned with the organization’s overall goal and vision. It applies to all
employees and project teams that will be responsible for designing,
strategizing and implementing programmes. The policy requirements apply
only to those programmes funded by CSR and exclude those funded by other
national, international and government sources
IMPLEMENTATION ROLES AND RESPONSIBITIES
The Board members will be responsible for overseeing all CSR related
activities. It includes the following:
1. Identifying possible opportunities for partnerships with CSR.
2. Networking and engagement with partners.
3. Negotiating for finalizing partnership agreements and other formalities.
4. Connecting CSR partners to appropriate unit/ departments/ project
teams.
5. Maintaining communication channels for reporting, feedback and review
6. Revising, modifying and finalizing the CSR policy based on the needs
and implementation experience.
REVIEW AND EVALUATION STATEMENT
This policy draft will be reviewed and finalized by the Policy Committee within
the organization with the approval of the Board of Directors. The policy may/
shall be amended as and when required by the committee through a
consultative process with the management team.
COMMUNICATION STATEMENT
The final policy will be circulated to all the Board of Directors, members and
staff of the organization through email/ hard copy and orientation to relevant
people within the organization. It will also be shared with potential CSR
partners as requested by them.
POLICY DETAILS
1. PAYANA AREAS OF WORK – THEMATIC AREAS
The list of permissible areas for CSR initiative as per the schedule includes
ending hunger, poverty and malnutrition; promoting public health; supporting
education and employment; addressing gender inequality and empowerment
of women; protecting the environment; and funding cultural initiatives and the
arts.
Payana thematic areas of work include HIV/ AIDS prevention, care and
support; Adolescent health & education, Capacity Building of individuals and
organization, Human Rights, improving mental health Sexuality/ Gender
Minorites and other marginalized community, Bring social justice and equality
for Sexuality/ Gender Minorities and other marginalized community.
Common thematic areas will be chosen based on the CSR partner’s objective
for funding and Payana experience in the area.
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1. PAYANA AREAS OF WORK – THEMATIC AREAS
The target groups that Payana works with include Sexuality/Gender minorities
and other marginalized communities of the society more specifically, those
who are Sexuality Minorities, Gender Minorities, (LGBTQI, MSM,
Transgender) Sex workers, People Living With HIV, Street Children, Person
with disability, Orphan Children, Exploited Children and who have been
exploited on basis of Caste, Class, Religion, Gender, Sexuality, Ethnicity,
Race, Place of Birth or Residence or Occupation
Payana focuses on areas/ regions that it currently has a presence such as the
state of Karnataka in Particular, it is however open to partnerships for
programmes across India and world.
2. GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND PROCEDURES FOR CSR PARTNERSHIP
Payana’s partnership with CSR should:
1. Align with the organization’s objectives, vision and mission
2. Adhere to the overall principles of Payana which are:
A. Democratic spaces
B. Inclusiveness
C. Centrality of community needs
D. Belief in people’s knowledge and wisdom
E. Relevance of methodology and approach
F. Equitable resources o Secular and apolitical
G. Transparency and accountability
3. Democratic in nature and based on mutually decided objectives and
priorities
4. Be cognizant of the country’s constitutional environment and be within its
framework.
5. Follow Payana’s key approaches in program planning and
implementation. These include:
A. Program Science approach in the plan, design and implementation of
all the projects
B. Respect for local contexts and harnessing local resources pool o
Focus on sustainability
C. Community centric
D. Life cycle approach
E. Scale up driven
F. Respect for diverse views
G. Partnership with the state
6. Give equal significance to both qualitative and quantitative results and
outcomes and not just output driven in implementing projects for social
change.
7. Adopt a holistic approach to program design and strategy than a onetime
approach. It could also include complimenting, supplementing, scaling up
of existing programs.
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8. Be instrumental in complementing existing state programmes and
maintaining a healthy partnership with the government across all CSR
projects
9. Refrain from a charity-based approach
Criteria for collaborations and partnerships:
Payana would refrain from partnerships with Corporates that:
A. Promote a company’s product or scheme for profit
B. Show other organizations in poor light
C. Duplicate efforts of other organizations including government in the
same geography
D. That may adversely affect the sentiments of any one section of the
society or a given community
E. Have political or religious overtones
F. Involves business around products/ materials that have adverse effects
on individuals’ health and well-being such as tobacco, alcohol, fire
crackers and arms.
Funding requests shall be guided by the following:
1. Funding shall be sought for either implementation of an entire project or
even specific components of it such as evaluation, research;
Communication, capacity building, advocacy, services etc. provided it
compliments an existing intervention.
2. Funding could be sought from multiple companies with common
mandates (such as livelihood, education, adolescent health etc.) for a
particular project on the consent and consensus among all companies
involved.
3. Budget allocation will be jointly decided with the funder. Payana’s focus
for fund allocation would be ensuring greater percentage of funding for
project activities and staff rather than on branding, equipment etc.
Branding
1. Acknowledgement of the funder through use of company logo in
publications, in banners, in the website, in workshops and dissemination
meetings.
2. Adherence to Payana’s branding, communication and website policy
with regard to visibility and brand attention of the funder.
3. Any additional requirement of the funders shall be discussed and
mutually agreed upon prior to the inception of the project.
Pre-partnership meetings
1. Mutual trust and dialogues at regular intervals with the funder will guide
Payana’s partnership through CSR
2. Prior to formalizing the agreement, Payana will ensure transparent
discussions in helping the funder understand Payana’s approach of
programme science and its application in actual project implementation
process and the effort put behind influencing the community.
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3. PROCEDURES
1. Payana follows a transparent procedure of scrutinizing data, identifying
program gaps, developing strategies to address them, building effective
partnerships and making collective decision with regard to funding
requirements.
2. The CSR partnerships will be established in a phased manner:
A. The first phase will be a detailed discussion to explain to the
Corporate about our activities in the field and understand the specific
thematic area the Corporate is interested to partner for.
B. The second phase would include discussion and consensus around
key objectives, focus areas and project strategies in the area
identified jointly. This would include aligning the areas with the
priorities of the corporate and the expertise of Payana
C. The third phase would be submission of the detailed proposal with
the budget to the Corporate and finalizing the modalities of the
financial agreement. 654
√ Please note that the budget would be given for the number of years
Payana would think appropriate. Negotiations around the same would
be possible
√ Suggestions for modifications of the proposal by the Corporate is
welcomed and valued
3. Payana lays done clear and consistent reporting mechanisms at
regular intervals to update the funder on agreed aspects of the project
which includes intensive reporting of utilization of funds.
4. Payana will make provision for field visits by funders in a manner that
would least interrupt the activities in the field and the communities
concerned.
TRANSPARENCY AT ALL LEVELS
1. Visits to the field or office of Payana would be arranged before, during
and after the implementation process.
2. Use of the resources (human, monetary, technical) provided by the
corporate will be kept transparent at all times
3. The project related work will be accessible and measurable at all times
4. Decision making processes to be transparent at all levelss
