**2. Addressing financial sustainability in research project management**

Integrating sustainability principles in research project proposals is an effective way to convince donors about the long term impacts of one's project activities. However, as was stated earlier, attempts by many prospective research funds applicants to demonstrate to funders or donor agencies how their proposals would continue after project funding ends appear to focus solely on the issues of finances. Admittedly, financial sustainability is of paramount importance as far as project management and sustenance are concerned. It is the pivot around which sustainability as a concept oscillates. However, as would be elucidated in this article, donor agencies look at other equally important aspects of sustainability to assure and/or satisfy themselves that such research projects will continue to deliver long term impacts in terms of benefits to the target community even after the grants expire.

So what is financial sustainability, and how can it be assured and sustained by a research project proposal in the long term? Financial sustainability simply refers how the financial support required for the project activities of an organization or research project team will continue after funding, mostly in the form of grants, have ended. It refers to ensuring a steady flow of funds and generating revenue for maintaining and continuing project activities with the view to providing project impacts to stakeholders or target groups, at least for a considerable length of time [2, 3, 10]. The financial sustainability process itself involves essentially developing a financial plan outlining the various options available for expanding the resource stream of the organization or research project. This may require undertaking research to understand the "terrain" and the various options that can be used to maintain a steady flow of funds. Efforts at this stage also help in knowing potential donors and understanding their priority areas of funding.

Plans to sustain research project activities financially in higher education institutions take many and varied forms [2, 3]. Broadly speaking, financial sustainability activities are planned in such ways that the research projects themselves generate financial gains or profits and continue to function on earned income even after the funding timeframe elapses. Some of the common "business" sustainability measures and/or options that are used, particularly in the case of research project proposals to donors, according to Leon [2] include:


So while financial sustainability options take varied forms as illustrated, it is not to be taken or assumed in the least that they operate mutually exclusively. Most often, multiple financial sustainability options with practical and viable potencies are the ones that serve to convince donors that an organization can really deliver positive outcomes in the absence of primary funding. A good financial sustainability strategy to exemplify this point is a situation in which a research project team is able to, for example, demonstrate in their research project proposal, plans to ensure that paid up members of an organization receive a set of services (which include a regular newsletter, information on best practices, policy and regulatory advocacy and participation in annual conference), while at the same time making plans in the proposal to raise funds as well as provide specialized, accredited courses, information searches, published sectoral information and professional advisory services for fees which will be paid for by members and external agents.
