Open Call: Thematic Programme on Human Rights and Democracy (Turkey)

Deadline: 28-Mar-23

The Delegation of the European Union to Türkiye launches a call for proposals under the Thematic Programme on Human Rights and Democracy, the successor of the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR).

Objectives

• The global objective of this call for proposals is to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms, democracy and the rule of law in Türkiye through empowering civil society organisations in building resilient, inclusive and democratic societies.
• The specific objectives of this call for proposals are:
  • Lot 1: to support civil society organisations working on closing the accountability gap and fighting impunity.
  • Lot 2: to support civil society organisations working on promoting fundamental freedoms and strengthening civic and political space.

Priorities

The priorities of this call for proposals are:

• Lot 1:
  • Develop comprehensive approaches for ensuring accountability, in particular for the most serious human rights violations and abuses, and support victims in seeking remedy by linking national and international mechanisms;
  • Support initiatives to combat impunity for human rights violations and abuses and transitional justice processes;
  • Strive to eradicate torture and other forms of ill-treatment through prevention, prohibition, accountability and redress for victims;
  • Promote rights-based and gender responsive justice, access to justice and legal assistance, and right to a fair trial;
  • Monitor human rights in prisons and other places of deprivation of liberty and support the improvement, in line with international standards, of the detention conditions and treatment of persons deprived of liberty.
• Lot 2:
  • Monitor challenges or opportunities for civic and democratic space, and support efforts to prevent and counter the closing of space and democratic backsliding;
  • Prevent and take action against violations of the freedom of peaceful assembly and association;
  • Promote and support rights of persons belonging to minorities;
  • Promote and take appropriate action against disproportionate restrictions on freedom of thought, conscience and religion;
  • Combat all forms of discrimination on any ground, with a specific attention to multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination.

Funding Information

• The overall indicative amount made available under this call for proposals is EUR 4,000,000 to be financed under 2022 budget and an indicatively EUR 4,000,000 to be financed under 2023 budget, subject to the availability of the appropriations provided for in the general budget of the Union for 2023.
• Indicative allocation of funds by lot/geographical distribution:
  • Lot 1: EUR 1,970,000
  • Lot 2: EUR 6,030,000
• Any grant requested under this call for proposals must fall between the following minimum and maximum amounts:
  • Lot 1:
    • minimum amount: EUR 1,750,000
    • maximum amount: EUR 1,970,000
  • Lot 2:
    • minimum amount: EUR 450,000
    • maximum amount: EUR 700,000

Eligibility Criteria

• Lead Applicant(s)
  • In order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:
    • be a legal person
    • be non-profit-making
    • be a civil society organisation
    • no nationality restriction applies to lead applicants and, if any, to co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies)   and
    • be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action with the co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies), not acting as an intermediary and
    • have stable and sufficient sources of finance to ensure the continuity of their organisation throughout the project
    • demonstrate their capacity to manage activities of a scale corresponding with the size of the project for which a grant is requested.
• Co-applicant(s)
  • Co-applicants participate in designing and implementing the action, and the costs they incur are eligible in the same way as those incurred by the lead applicant.
  • Co-applicants must satisfy the eligibility criteria as applicable to the lead applicant himself.
  • Co-applicants must sign the mandate.
  • The lead applicant may act individually or with co-applicant(s).
  • If awarded the grant contract, the co-applicant(s) (if any) will become beneficiary(ies) in the action (together with the coordinator)
• Affiliated Entities
  • The lead applicant and its co-applicant(s) may act with affiliated entity(ies).
  • Only the following entities may be considered as affiliated entities to the lead applicant and/or to co-applicant(s):
    • Only entities having a structural link with the applicants (i.e. the lead applicant or a co-applicant), in particular a legal or capital link.
  • This structural link encompasses mainly two notions:
    • Control, as defined in Directive 2013/34/EU on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings:
      • Entities affiliated to an applicant may hence be:
        • Entities directly or indirectly controlled by the applicant (daughter companies or first-tier subsidiaries). They may also be entities controlled by an entity controlled by the applicant (granddaughter companies or second-tier subsidiaries) and the same applies to further tiers of control;
        • Entities directly or indirectly controlling the applicant (parent companies). Likewise, they may be entities controlling an entity controlling the applicant;
        • Entities under the same direct or indirect control as the applicant (sister companies).
    • Membership, i.e. the applicant is legally defined as a e.g. network, federation, association in which the proposed affiliated entities also participate or the applicant participates in the same entity (e.g. network, federation, association,…) as the proposed affiliated entities.

For more information, visit Delegation of the European Union to Turkey.