Deadline: 31-May-21
The Public Affairs Section (PAS) of the U.S. Embassy to the Kyrgyz Republic is pleased to announce that funding is available through the Embassy’s Democracy Commission Small Grants Program.
This program supports the development of the country’s democratic institutions and civil society by competitively awarding small grants to nonprofit, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and associations, to nonprofit civil society organizations (CSOs), and to independent local media organizations in the Kyrgyz Republic.
Priority Themes
- Advancing Business Empowerment and Social Entrepreneurship
- Project Goal: To strengthen rural entrepreneurship and small business development, with a focus on recovery from the pandemic in the regions, by increasing knowledge and tools that entrepreneurs and small businesses owners need to make their businesses successful.
- Project Objectives:
- Provide at least 50 potential entrepreneurs with knowledge, skills, and tools to successfully develop their businesses within 12 months.
- Conduct mentorship/speakers/exchange programs for at least 30 small business owners to learn and apply innovative approaches in sustainable business development within 12 months.
- Empower at least 50 potential entrepreneurs to use online digital resources or other new resources to promote their businesses within 12 months.
- Promoting Democratic Institutions
- Project Goal: To strengthen democracy in the Kyrgyz Republic through increased civic engagement, rule of law at the citizen level, and increased CSO capacity.
- Project Audience(s): Rural youth and university students, local and state government officials, urban and regional NGOs, independent media and journalists, vulnerable and marginalized populations.
- Project Objectives:
- Empower either 200 secondary school students or students of university law departments to better understand the importance of civic participation through activities like debate, advocacy, speaker programs, and rule of law and leadership programs within 12 months;
- Increase media literacy and critical thinking skills of at least 200 people from rural communities within 12 months;
- Empower local communities to participate in decision-making processes and increase their civic engagement within 12 months;
- Strengthen capacity of at least 8 regional NGOs on organizational and capacity development and encourage knowledge sharing between organizations, and creating relevant training manuals in the Kyrgyz language; and/or
- Enhance capacity of at least 8 regional NGOs in Batken, Osh, Jalal-Abad, Naryn, Talas, Issyk-kul, and Bishkek on public relations and developing a solid communication plan to communicate effectively with target audiences, crafting strong messages, maximizing efforts with traditional and social media, and measuring the results.
- Preventing Violent Extremism (PVE)
- Project Goal: To prevent radicalization among youth in rural regions and new urban communities by strengthening individual and community resilience and building capacity of civil society organizations in rural communities in preventing radicalization, in part through stronger partnerships and better coordination with key stakeholders.
- Project Audience(s): At-risk youth (especially men aged 14-28), including members of ethnic minorities, with limited educational and economic opportunities, especially in remote and undeveloped rural areas and new urban communities; and community leaders such as representatives of civil society and educational institutions positioned to develop and implement interventions to prevent radicalization and violent extremism.
- Project Objectives
- Improve media literacy and critical thinking skills of at least 50 young people (aged 14-28) in rural regions or new urban communities to recognize and critically assess online extremist content and propaganda, while promoting narratives founded on human rights, tolerance, and democratic values;
- Using local expertise and credible voices within communities increase the identification with and sense of belonging to their communities of at least 50 young people (aged 14-28) in rural regions or new urban communities, by getting them engaged in community development and by strengthening intergroup trust.
- Trafficking-in-Persons (Anti-Trafficking)
- Project Goal: To reduce trafficking-in-persons in the Kyrgyz Republic by empowering and supporting labour migrants and at-risk groups, building capacity of government officials, and improving understanding of TIP issues.
- Project Audience(s): At-risk youth and women, labor migrants, local and state government officials.
- Project Objectives:
- Build capacity of 50 government officials and members of TIP regional coordination councils on NRM to have a clear delineation of the respective roles of the various agencies involved;
- Establish a network of at least 5 civil society organizations working to combat trafficking-in-persons, who can provide expertise and coordinate with government officials on TIP issues; and/or
- Raise awareness of migrant legal rights through at least three trainings reaching 100 current and potential labor migrants.
- Preventing Gender-Based Violence
- Project Goal: Strengthen efforts to reduce gender-based violence in the Kyrgyz Republic by increasing awareness of gender-based violence, improving access to economic empowerment resources/programs, and supporting civil participation in shaping policy that counters gender-based violence.
- Project Audience(s): Vulnerable women and victims of gender-based violence, including from marginalized and at-risk minority populations.
- Project Objectives:
- Conduct a widespread informational campaign across the country on measures to counter and prevent gender-based violence within 12 months;
- Empower at least 100 vulnerable women and victims of GBV through economic empowerment and personal development programs; and/or
- Increase coordination of gender-based violence prevention and response efforts among local authorities and other stakeholders, including at least 5 civil society organizations.
Funding Information
- Estimated Award Ceiling: $50,000
- Estimated Award Floor: $10,000
- Length of Project Period: 9-12 months
Eligibility Criteria
The following organizations are eligible to apply:
- Not-for-profit organizations
- Civil society/non-governmental organizations
- For this announcement, only organizations based in the Kyrgyz Republic are eligible to apply.
For more information, visit https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=332549