Time is one of the most generous and unforgiving forces in international development work. It provides structure, accountability, and measurable progress, yet it also imposes limits through deadlines, funding cycles, and eligibility boundaries. 

In international development, time can enable transformation, but it can also constrain what is possible within a program. This reality is evident in public funding instrument such as the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI) operate within clearly defined parameters. Proposed projects are selected through a formal application process, funded within specific budget ceilings, and required to conclude within fixed contribution timelines, with eligible and ineligible costs explicitly outlined in the CFLI official guidelines.[1]

Why Timelines And Eligibility Rules Shape Development

Under these guidelines, seed funding and core or recurrent organizational costs are not eligible for support.[1]  These exclusions reflect the program’s design. CFLI prioritizes time-bound, measurable project delivery within defined fiscal periods. Development, however, rarely unfolds neatly within a project timeline. It progresses across seasons, fiscal years, and phases of learning. 

At ANIDA, seed-stage inputs and ongoing operational coordination are central to how we work. Because CFLI is designed for time-bound projects with defined eligibility rules, some essentials fall outside its funding scope.[1][6] We continue supporting communities through early-stage investments, consistent coordination, and follow-up so initiatives can grow beyond a single funding cycle.[2][3] It is in this space between funding periods that sustained partnerships help ensure progress continues without interruption. 

What Continuity Looks Like In Practice 

ANIDA began working in Liberia in 2019 to address poverty, unemployment, and inequality, and we work across 18 communities through integrated education, agricultural, and health initiatives.[2] In these communities, our Hope for Tomorrow Program supports children’s school enrollment and educational continuity. 

Over time, our child sponsorship programs have supported more students, and we have seen stronger school attendance as families receive consistent support to keep children in class.[3] This continuity matters because sustained enrollment creates the conditions for regular attendance, stronger learning outcomes, and greater long-term stability for children and their families. 

Our sustainable farming and agricultural programs illustrate how development unfolds across years of implementation. In Tonzolomon, ANIDA’s cooperative farming initiative began following our establishment in 2019 as a one-acre effort and expanded to eleven acres by 2023 through phased cultivation, structured training, and coordinated oversight.[4] Livestock operations, including poultry and pig farming, expanded throughout 2023, while cassava cultivation progressed toward value-added processing through preparation for cassava flour and gari production.[4] 

Overall, our farming projects have continued growing in acreage as community capacity strengthens and more land is brought under cultivation through coordinated support. This initiative demonstrates a capacity-building model centered on sustained training, structured oversight, and continuity that supports long-term program stability and expansion.[4] 

Long-Term Support Changes

The impact of this continuity is visible at the individual level. In Tonzolomon, participation in ANIDA’s cooperative farm reshaped opportunities for women such as Maisha. Through sustained training, leadership development, and engagement across multiple growing seasons, she moved from subsistence activity to active involvement in crop sales and community investment discussions.[4] She now contributes not only to agricultural production, but also to decisions that shape how income and opportunity are shared within her community. 

Health initiatives demonstrate another dimension of time in development work. In November 2023, ANIDA’s medical mission delivered concentrated services to 927 patients in Ganta and surrounding communities.[5] This intervention addressed immediate health needs within a defined mission period. At the same time, long-term resilience continues to depend on sustained community engagement, annual child protection advocacy initiatives, and strengthened supplementary feeding components implemented during 2024 to reinforce school attendance.[3][5] 

The Distinction, Therefore, Is Functional

These efforts are coordinated rather than isolated. Educational access strengthens long-term opportunities. Agricultural expansion builds household income stability. Health outreach protects the human capacity required for both. Together, they form a sequenced development framework designed to build stability gradually and responsibly over time. The distinction, therefore, is functional. 

CFLI provides structured, accountable, time-bound project funding within clearly defined eligibility parameters. ANIDA provides structured, monitored, and continuous development support that helps early-stage initiatives take root and continue growing over time. These approaches are not competing models. They operate at different stages of the development cycle and, when aligned, can strengthen one another.[1] 

When structured public funding and sustained community support work together, development does not pause at the end of a grant period. It continues season after season, year after year. 

Key takeaways for donors and policymakers 

• Your support keeps progress alive between grants. When a funding cycle ends or a program falls outside eligibility rules, families still need school support, food stability, and follow-up. Your donation helps prevent programs from stalling. 
• You fund the “unfunded essentials.” Public grants often cannot cover seed-stage growth and ongoing coordination. Donor support fills the gap that makes projects actually last.
• You help turn short-term help into long-term stability. Consistent support strengthens attendance, expands farming capacity over time, and builds resilience.
• Your impact is visible and trackable. What you give shows up in real outcomes over time. 

References: 

1.  Global Affairs Canada. (2025). Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI): Liberia, call for proposals and guidelines. The Canada Fund for Local Initiatives – Liberia (2025)
2. ANIDA. (2024). ANIDA Liberia overview (in 2024 Impact Report). 2024-Impact-Report
3.  ANIDA. (2024). Hope for Tomorrow Program: Education and sponsorship updates (in 2024 Impact Report). 2024-Impact-Report
4.  ANIDA. (2023). Tonzolomon Farmland Project Report (or 2023 Impact Report). 2023-Impact-Report
5.  ANIDA. (2023). Medical Mission Report: Ganta and surrounding communities (November 2023). 2023-Impact-Report
6.  Global Affairs Canada. Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI): Background and priorities. The Canada Fund for Local Initiatives 
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