Project Design

From context analysis to fundable, implementable programmes.

Good project design starts with understanding what's actually happening on the ground — not what the last project document said was happening. IMACON designs development interventions by combining rigorous context analysis with practical knowledge of what donors fund, what implementing partners can deliver, and what target populations actually need.

We work across the full design cycle: situation analysis, stakeholder mapping, needs assessment, logical framework development, risk analysis, and budget construction. We produce designs that are technically sound, politically realistic, and written in a way that scores well in competitive procurement.

What this looks like in practice

Context analysis for non-formal education programming in Cambodia

Before designing the next phase of DVV International's Cambodia programme, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of the non-formal education landscape: institutional structures, policy frameworks, urban-rural disparities, gender barriers, quality issues, and the specific needs of populations excluded from formal education. The analysis — running 15 to 20 pages with annexes — became the evidence base for programme design decisions about geographic targeting, institutional partnerships, and intervention strategy.

Media development context analysis in post-invasion Ukraine

For DW Akademie, we mapped the journalism education landscape, media consumption patterns, and disinformation dynamics in a country where the media sector had been fundamentally reshaped by war. The analysis informed decisions about which training formats to invest in, which audiences to prioritise, and how to design media literacy interventions for populations (particularly seniors) most vulnerable to information manipulation.

Institutional context analysis for a global confederation

For the Caritas Internationalis MEAL and Strategic Framework project, we produced a Preliminary Analytical Review covering the confederation's institutional architecture, governance structures, strategic orientations, existing MEAL practices across regions, the ongoing regionalisation process, and the Catholic social teaching framework that shapes organisational identity. This 12-to-15-page analysis informed both the MEAL system design and the Strategic Framework revision — ensuring that new systems would fit the organisation's actual operating reality rather than an idealised version of it.

What we bring to project design

Rapid context analysis — we can produce a substantive situational overview in weeks, not months. Multi-stakeholder needs assessment that goes beyond surveys to capture institutional dynamics and political economy. Risk-sensitive design that accounts for conflict, governance fragility, and the practical constraints of implementation in challenging environments. And fluency in donor requirements: we know what EU, BMZ, ADA, Sida, USAID, and multilateral procurement processes expect, because we compete in them regularly.

IMACON maintains an active tender pipeline of 11 to 15 simultaneous bids across EU, BMZ, ADA, Sida, Council of Europe, OSCE, and British Council frameworks. We apply a structured bid/no-bid scoring system — assessing thematic fit, geographic expertise, methodological match, language capacity, budget realism, competition landscape, and strategic value — to focus design effort where we can win and deliver.

What this looks like in practice

Context analysis for non-formal education programming in Cambodia

Media development context analysis in post-invasion Ukraine

Institutional context analysis for a global confederation

What we bring to project design

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