Deadline: 27-May-2024
The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) is inviting civil society organisations (CSOs) to submit their expression of interest for partnership and funding opportunities starting 2025.
The upcoming CSO strategy will reflect Sweden’s commitment to supporting an independent and diverse civil society in partner countries, which contributes to sustainable development.
Purpose and Objectives
- Through this call for expression of interest, Sida initiates a process which aims to ensure that the objectives of the Strategy for Sweden’s Development Cooperation with Civil Society (the CSO Strategy) are met. The purpose is to strengthen civil society organisations in developing countries, enhancing their opportunity and capacity to create better living conditions for people living in poverty and oppression.
- To be eligible, the organisations must contribute to the following objectives:
- First objective: Strengthened capacity of civil society in developing countries
- Increased capacity for civil society and its target groups, to organise in matters concerning to democracy, human rights, rule of law, gender equality, free market and property rights, accountability, tolerance, anti-corruption, and/or peace and security.
- Increased effectiveness, local anchoring, and transparency of civil society actors.
- Second objective: An enabling environment for civil society in developing countries
- Strengthened space for an independent and pluralistic civil society.
- Improved conditions for dialogue and collaboration within civil society, and between civil society and other actors.
- Improved conditions for civil society actors to act independently and diversify their financing.
- Sida will ensure that the objectives are met by choosing a diverse range of partners. However, each organisation does not have to contribute to all objectives.
- First objective: Strengthened capacity of civil society in developing countries
Eligibility Criteria
- The call is open to civil society organisations conducting long-term development cooperation relevant to the objectives in the current Swedish strategy for development cooperation with civil society.
- The following categories of CSOs are eligible:
- Organisations based and operating directly in countries eligible for official development assistance (ODA countries).
- Organisations forwarding funds to civil society actors in ODA countries.
- Organisations not based in an ODA country and focusing on the strategy objective “an enabling environment for civil society in developing countries”.
Requirements
- CSOs must submit their expression of interest through Sida’s digital form.
- Organisations can at most be included in two different expressions of interest.
- For organisations that are part of the same global or international federation, only one organisation can pass the first step of the evaluation process. See more information about the process below.
- Organisations outside ODA countries must be able to contribute with own funding corresponding to 15 per cent of Sida’s contribution. For organisations forwarding funds this must amount to a minimum of USD 500 000.
For more information, visit Sida.