Deadline: 23 March 2020
In order to support the development of civil society and democracy worldwide, the Netherlands has initiated two programs: the Human Rights Fund and the Netherlands Fund for Regional Partnership – Matra (NFRP – MATRA). Both these programs are open for application from Belarus.
These support programs are administered by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Warsaw. The Embassy office in Minsk has an advisory and a monitoring role.
The Netherlands Fund for Regional Partnership – Matra (NFRP – MATRA)
In order to be eligible for a NFRP – MATRA grant projects must aim at promotion of the process of development of Belarus into a pluralist, democratic country by supporting the creation of a stronger engaged civil society. NFRP – MATRA is a demand-driven program.
Themes
- Initiatives aimed at the promotion of the public participation;
- Initiatives strengthening civic activism;
- Initiatives to strengthen non-governmental institutions’ ability to influence transformation processes;
- Initiatives to strengthen the role of innovative education aimed at development of a stronger engaged civil society;
- Initiatives that can contribute to a structural economic modernisation;
- Initiatives that can contribute to good governance;
- Initiatives connected to change society’s attitude towards Human Rights;
- Cultural activities which are significantly addressing one or more above mentioned areas.
Within these themes, priority is given to projects that:
- Focus on youth;
- Make use of Dutch best practices, including using Dutch experts and/or cooperating with a Dutch NGO.
Human Rights Fund
As part of the global community the Netherlands wishes to promote freedom in the world. The human rights policy of the Dutch government reflects that responsibility.
The objective of the Human Rights Fund is to support initiatives that promote the implementation of fundamental freedoms and the protection of the rights of groups of people that are subject to discrimination.
For this call for proposals the Embassy will select projects explicitly focusing on:
- Freedom of expression, both online and offline (Including activities focusing on provision of safety to journalists and improvement of the quality of their work;)
- Freedom of Religion and Belief;
- Equal Rights for Women;
- Equal rights for LGBTI;
- Human Rights Defenders;
- Rule of law, including accountability/combating impunity.
Requirements
- Applications must be relevant to the NFRP – MATRA or the Human Rights Fund objectives;
- The duration of a project should not exceed twenty four (24) months (Beginning from July 2020);
- The project should be an initiative responding to needs of the target group;
- The project goal should be clearly stated, as well as the expected results;
- The target group should be clearly defined;
- The target group should be actively involved in all stages of the project;
- The target group should carry a part of the project burden (financial or in kind);
- The project should clearly indicate how it contributes to the improvement of democracy, the rule of law, public administration and good governance, or Human Rights in Belarus.
Restrictions
- Only NGOs and non-profit organizations (including independent media) are eligible to take part in this call for proposals.
- The following projects, activities and budget items are not eligible for funding under NFRP – MATRA or Human Rights Fund:
- Projects that have been submitted after the closing date of the calls for proposals;
- Commercial activities;
- Projects that entirely repeat previous projects;
- (Re)construction costs ( of buildings) in projects.
- Purely charitable activities, such as medical assistance or the donation of food, are not regarded as structural contributions to the reform process. Nor do they actively involve the target group. Laudable and useful as they may be, these activities are not eligible for the NFRP – MATRA or the Human Rights Fund grant.
- A new project within HRF or NFRP-MATRA can only be supported if the previous project of an applicant has been completed and officially closed unless other agreement has been made between the Embassy and the partner. (The Embassy reserves the right to decide on case by case basis).
- Please note that an organization can submit only one project proposal per call for proposals. If a proposal is submitted under NFRP – MATRA, the applicant cannot submit another proposal under Human Rights Fund, and vice versa.
How to Apply
- Project proposals must be sent via email at the address given on the website;
- Applications should be submitted by the project organizers themselves;
- Applications must be submitted in English (Belarusian or Russian version of the project is welcomed but not required);
- Applicants are requested to fill in the form in English only;
- Applicants cannot change the format of the application form nor add or remove questions.
For more information, visit https://www.netherlandsandyou.nl/your-country-and-the-netherlands/belarus/and-the-netherlands/hrf-and-nfrp-matra