How a grant panel reads your use-of-funds table

Most applicants treat the use-of-funds table as admin: a list of things they want to buy. Panels read it as evidence. In a few rows it shows whether you know what the project costs, whether the money matches the plan, and whether anything has been padded. A strong narrative with a weak table rarely survives scoring.

1. Every line has a purpose the panel can trace

A reviewer reads each line and asks: what does this item do for the project? “Equipment, ₦19,000,000” tells them nothing. “Second cassava grating line, installed (quotation attached), ₦19,000,000” tells them what it is, that you priced it properly and why it matters. If a line can’t be connected to an outcome in your plan, expect a question or a cut.

2. The numbers come from quotations, not hopes

Round figures are a warning sign. ₦5,000,000 for “miscellaneous” looks like a guess; ₦4,860,000 from a supplier quotation looks like a plan. Attach the quotations, and use the same figures in the table, the narrative and the budget annex. Panels compare them.

3. Sources and uses balance to the naira

The table has two halves. Uses: what the money pays for. Sources: where the money comes from, typically the grant you are asking for, your own contribution and any equity from partners. The two totals must be identical. If the project costs ₦25,000,000 and you ask for ₦20,000,000, the remaining ₦5,000,000 has to be visibly yours.

4. Your own contribution is visible

Panels and investors want to see that founders share the risk. A contribution of around 10% or more is a common expectation, though each programme sets its own rules. Say where your share comes from: savings, retained profit, equipment you already own (valued fairly) or equity from a partner.

5. Working capital is realistic

New capacity needs raw materials, staff and energy before the first sale is paid for. Leaving working capital out is one of the most common reasons a plan looks fragile. Estimate the months between buying inputs and receiving payment, and fund that gap in the table.

6. It matches the rest of the application

The table, the narrative, the financial projections and the impact section should tell one story. If the narrative says the project creates 14 jobs, the operating costs should include those salaries. If the projections assume 9 tonnes a day, the equipment in the table should be able to produce it.

DocuCraft builds the sources and uses table from your answers and blocks export if the funding doesn’t cover the cost. Every figure in the text is locked to the same numbers, so they can’t drift.

A quick checklist before you submit

• Each line names the item, what it does and where the price comes from
• Quotations attached for equipment and works
• Sources total equals uses total, exactly
• Your own contribution is shown and explained
• Working capital is included
• The same figures appear in the narrative and projections

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