As I have said before, I think it is important to promote a community and content in Arabic. For me both ZA and ZCG have valid points. My suggestion is to reach a middle ground:
ZCG does not feel confident enough to fund this initiative, so they relent and approve it.
ZA asks for $20,000 USD for several months of work, so they give in and are willing to receive a smaller ambassador-style amount to boost everything they have already been doing.
While you agree on this, take some time to review what this grant requires and what the ZCG really needs from this community.
From my perspective, after closely following the various requests this year, I believe this is the main issue. I think this is the first time it’s been addressed so directly and clearly. I understand it’s difficult to say, but if this is indeed the case, it needs to be stated this way so that ZA can address this concern. ZA is right that they are given different reasons each time for rejecting the proposal. I also want to emphasize that while they have been critical, I have always felt they were respectful.
In short, for me, the problem seems to be that while ZA does its job (Telegram, X, Academy), there’s something that doesn’t inspire confidence in ZCG (Is the work organic?), and therefore, it’s necessary to clarify what these issues are and resolve them.
I could be wrong; I’m simply sharing my perspective to help find a solution and move things forward, so they’re no longer stuck.