The GACC

Grassroots Action Coordination Council (GACC) Bylaws

November 27, 2023

Six months after the war outbreak, civilians continue to bear a heavy toll. Initial estimates suggest thousands of civilian deaths and millions displaced, with numbers steadily rising. Grave violations of basic rights include murder, rape, arbitrary arrest, kidnapping, torture, theft, looting, forced disappearance, and the occupation of homes, terrorizing civilians. The sight of corpses on streets has become tragically common in the capital’s three cities, Darfur, North and West Kordofan, and parts of South Kordofan, with peace, security, and tranquility nearly lost.

Infrastructure and essential services face continuous destruction, severely impacting daily life in conflict zones. Ethnic cleansing campaigns in West Darfur worsen, while tribal strife, hate speech, and racism escalate. The number of missing persons rises, humanitarian aid access remains restricted, hospitals are incapacitated, life-saving medicines are scarce, and water, electricity, and communications are disrupted. Famine looms, threatening everyone in the areas, directly and indirectly, affected by the war.

This bitter reality has prompted a group of activists in grassroots bodies, emergency response rooms (ERRs), and local and international humanitarian organizations to think about the necessity of finding alternatives to anti-war action, and then engage effectively and sustainably in preventing its direct and indirect effects. These extensive reflections and discussions resulted in the establishment of the Grassroots Action Coordination Council (GACC) — a council concerned with strategically and sustainably linking grassroots action, emergency interventions and local governance.

Grassroots action here refers to collaborative efforts initiated by diverse groups of citizens, acting freely and independently in their localities and administrative units. These efforts are not tied to any political or ideological agenda or influenced by personal or collective biases. Whether directly or indirectly affected by the war, these grassroots actors demonstrate solidarity and engage in participatory activities aimed at addressing humanitarian needs, protecting civilians from rights violations, improving basic services, and advancing development agendas.

In later stages, these collaborative efforts involve activating local government structures and mechanisms. They draw inspiration from the experiences of GACC as a model for learning, development, and future reconstruction.

1. The Council/GACC: Grassroots Action Coordination Council.
2. ERRs (Emergency Response Rooms): Grassroots action group consisting of citizens who voluntarily stand in solidarity in their places of residence to meet urgent humanitarian needs.
3. Member: Someone who obtains GACC membership in accordance with the terms and conditions stipulated in the GACCs Bylaws.
4. Representative: The member who represents an entity within the GACC’s membership. This may include representing an ERR in one of Khartoum’s localities or state ERRs, or representing a local or international organization, or any of the GACC’s operational committees or temporary specialized committees.
5. The member elected and assigned by the GACC membership to facilitate meetings and oversee the resulting actions and tasks that must be implemented within a specific and defined period of time.
6. The member elected by the GACC’s membership to act on behalf of the Rapporteur in the event of force majeure circumstances preventing the Rapporteur from attending. The Deputy Rapporteur assumes responsibility for all duties assigned to the Rapporteur.
7. Grassroots Projects Support Fund: Fund designated to carry out specific roles and tasks directly aimed at enhancing and expediting the process of meeting urgent humanitarian needs, aligned with the specific focus areas of each fund underlying the GACC’s operations.
8. Form F1: A planning tool used as a proposal format for submitting foundational projects. It remains valid for a period of three months from the date of submission to the project approval mechanism within the GACC.
9. Form F2: A tool utilized by specialized committees or working groups within the GACC to evaluate, review, amend, and approve basic projects submitted by an ERR. It serves as a documented record of decisions made regarding specific project proposals.
10. Form F3: A contractual tool used for agreements to be signed by the respective ERR that has previously submitted a proposal for a grassroots project aimed at addressing an urgent humanitarian need.
11. Form F4: A reporting tool used to track the implementation progress of activities, detail inputs, monitor outputs, and document challenges and lessons learned. These reports encompass the entire lifecycle of activities within grassroots projects, from inception to completion.
12. Form F5: A financial reporting tool used to oversee the expenditures and disbursements of grants, ensuring compliance with financial auditing standards, and emphasizing transparency and accountability.
13. Attachment A: A purchase booklet permanently appended to the base project grant contract.
14. Ad hoc Committee: A committee established by the Council on a temporary basis to undertake specific tasks within a defined timeframe. Its function ceases upon completion of the tasks for which it was created.
15. Permanent Projects: Projects with budgets and costs planned on a fixed basis, accounting for variables such as price fluctuations and population size in any residential area targeted by an ERR for a grassroots project.

A. Provisions & Interpretations

1. The Council/GACC: Grassroots Action Coordination Council.
2. ERRs (Emergency Response Rooms): Grassroots action group consisting of citizens who voluntarily stand in solidarity in their places of residence to meet urgent humanitarian needs.
3. Representative: The member who represents an entity within the GACC’s membership. This may include representing an ERR in one of Khartoum’s localities or state ERRs, or representing a local or international organization, or any of the GACC’s operational committees or temporary specialized committees.
4. The member elected and assigned by the GACC membership to facilitate meetings and oversee the resulting actions and tasks that must be implemented within a specific and defined period of time.
5. The member elected by the GACC’s membership to act on behalf of the Rapporteur in the event of force majeure circumstances preventing the Rapporteur from attending. The Deputy Rapporteur assumes responsibility for all duties assigned to the Rapporteur.
6. Grassroots Projects Support Fund: Fund designated to carry out specific roles and tasks directly aimed at enhancing and expediting the process of meeting urgent humanitarian needs, aligned with the specific focus areas of each fund underlying the GACC’s operations.
7. Form F1: A planning tool used as a proposal format for submitting foundational projects. It remains valid for a period of three months from the date of submission to the project approval mechanism within the GACC.
8. Form F2: A tool utilized by specialized committees or working groups within the GACC to evaluate, review, amend, and approve basic projects submitted by an ERR. It serves as a documented record of decisions made regarding specific project proposals.
9. Form F3: A contractual tool used for agreements to be signed by the respective ERR that has previously submitted a proposal for a grassroots project aimed at addressing an urgent humanitarian need.
10. Form F4: A reporting tool used to track the implementation progress of activities, detail inputs, monitor outputs, and document challenges and lessons learned. These reports encompass the entire lifecycle of activities within grassroots projects, from inception to completion.
11. Form F5: A financial reporting tool used to oversee the expenditures and disbursements of grants, ensuring compliance with financial auditing standards, and emphasizing transparency and accountability.
12. Attachment A: A purchase booklet permanently appended to the base project grant contract.
13. Ad hoc Committee: A committee established by the Council on a temporary basis to undertake specific tasks within a defined timeframe. Its function ceases upon completion of the tasks for which it was created.
14. Permanent Projects: Projects with budgets and costs planned on a fixed basis, accounting for variables such as price fluctuations and population size in any residential area targeted by an ERR for a grassroots project.
15. Member: Someone who obtains GACC membership in accordance with the terms and conditions stipulated in the GACCs Bylaws.

B. The Council/GACC

1. Definition: The GACC is a coordinating body comprising ERRs, local and international organizations. GACC, through ERRs, collaborates to support grassroots community responses to humanitarian needs, addressing medical, food, service, women’s issues, community protection, education, and other forms of assistance as determined by grassroots entities or the GACC.
2. Vision: To ensure continuous humanitarian aid led by Sudanese, inspired by the spirit of “Nafeer” (mobilization) and volunteerism, and supported by diverse segments of society. Our goal is to foster civil solidarity that preserves our social fabric and dignity while addressing our collective needs.
3. Message: GACC was founded on the principle of citizenship as the foundation for rights, guided by the principles of good governance: transparency, accountability, participation, equality, and justice in resource allocation. GACC aims to inspire our people to envision a prosperous future for Sudan, characterized by freedom, peace, and justice. Embracing diversity and peaceful coexistence, we promote community solidarity and local governance.
4. GACC Functions: GACC coordinates with all ERRs across Sudan to ensure a rapid response during and beyond times of conflict, facilitating humanitarian aid delivery to all communities. GACC focuses on attracting, coordinating, and overseeing financial and logistical support, and implementing jointly agreed programs among ERRs, local, and international organizations involved with GACC. Key priorities include safeguarding the autonomy of ERRs, preventing their exploitation for political or ideological purposes, similar to civil society organizations, and maintaining horizontal decision-making processes.
5. Admitting New Membership to GACC: An organization or state ERR may be added through consensus among representatives or by a two-thirds majority vote of eligible members.