Human Rights Grants and Funding for Local Organizations
Human Rights Grants and Funding for Local Organizations
ProtectDefenders.eu provides support to local human rights organisations in the implementation of activities aimed at advancing a human rights agenda and to counter violations (including combating repressive laws, restrictions, sanctions and administrative provisions restricting their work).
The objective is to strengthen and sustain initiatives by local human rights organisations aimed at preventing and responding to developments adversely affecting the human rights and the human rights defenders’ movements at the local level, especially in the most difficult countries and working on behalf of vulnerable communities.
This medium to longer term support programme is especially addressed to groups or NGOs that have limited capacity to approach donors, including those particularly targeted because of the issues they work on, those recently established or not having the possibility to register in their countries of operation, those in need of a timely and flexible response, and those working in remote and isolated areas.
ProtectDefenders.eu implements the support programme to local human rights organisations through its partners UAF, EMHRF, FIDH, OMCT, RSF, PI and PBI.
Fields of Intervention
Calls for proposals are either open or will be issued by the partners to cover the following thematic areas.
- Consolidating operational capacities of local human rights organisations.
- ProtectDefenders.eu prioritises funds for operational activities rarely covered by other donors yet important to the medium to long term prospects for Human Rights Defenders, such as:
- Supporting emerging local initiatives, especially the ones in isolated areas or strengthening Human Rights Defender protection structures, such as networks or focal points;
- Providing a lifeline to local organisations that are ‘endangered’ by unexpected and/or grave security, financial, legal or administrative situationsExpanding capacities to implement local innovative activities and projects to prevent and respond to infringements faced by Human Rights Defenders and their organisations, and to advance a human rights agenda. ProtectDefenders.eu supports strategies related to advocacy or public campaigns, capacity building and training, documentation and printing of materials, joint development and implementation of protection plans by human rights organisations and networks.
- Building capacities of local organisations, by allowing them to obtain and/or conduct specific trainings in areas that would assist in protecting them, such as physical and digital security, legal defense, litigation, etc.;
- Campaigning and advocating for the protection of defenders and to advance a human rights agenda, such as through “academic” visits of special rapporteurs, national, regional and international campaigns or advocacy missions to counter funding restrictions, defamation and the criminalisation of human rights defenders in countries in situations of early warning, and to support initiatives for legal and policy changes.Applications Accepted All Year Round!
For more information and application details, see; Human Rights Grants and Funding for Local Organizations