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Call key data
Promoting rights and values by empowering the civic space
Funding Program
Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme
Call number
CERV-2024-CHAR-LITI-CIVIC
deadlines
Opening
23.04.2024
Deadline
18.09.2024 17:00
Funding rate
90%
Call budget
€ 3,000,000.00
Estimated EU contribution per project
min. € 75,000.00
Link to the call
Link to the submission
Call content
short description
This call for proposals will promote rights and values by building primarily civil society organisations capacity and awareness on the Charter and by carrying out activities to ensure that the Charter is upheld. It focusses on promoting rights and values by empowering the civic space.
Call objectives
In line with the Charter Strategy and following up to the Charter Report 2022 on a thriving civic space for upholding fundamental rights in the EU, as well as the findings of the 2023 seminars and concluding conference, projects under this priority should promote rights and values by empowering civil society actors to work together at the local, regional and national levels on the fields covered by the programme. Projects should also help creating a channel of communication with the EU level to report on the state of the civic space in their countries and voice their concerns.
More specifically, projects could create a systematic and comprehensive monitoring system to regularly and consistently monitor the environment in which civil society organisations work in the national contexts, building on the Fundamental Rights Agency indicators about the shrinking civic space and of internal organisations’ data, and in particular of breaches of civil society organisations and human rights defenders’ fundamental rights.
Projects could also support and enhance the protection of civil society organisations, their members and human rights defenders working to protect and promote EU values under attack, including by facilitating access to dedicated support services. As such, they could also contribute to strengthening the resilience of civil society actors against attacks, including cyber threats, and their capacity to fully exploit the possibilities of the converged media to carry out effective, visible and impactful advocacy activities in the digital environment.
Transnational partnerships with mutual learning possibilities for partners in several EU Member States are particularly encouraged to apply, as well as networks of relevant actors at national level such as National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs), equality bodies, Ombuds-institutions, and the national Charter Focal Points.
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Expected effects and impacts
- Increased awareness about the state of play on civic space in the EU Member States based on sound evidences and comparable indicators;
- Strengthened relations and creation of networks among the actors protecting the civic space at local, national and European level, and between them and the national and European authorities;
- Increased dialogue about the civic space, with an increment of public attention to it, and developed positive narratives towards CSOs and rights defenders protecting and promoting fundamental rights, rule of law and democracy;
- More protected CSOs, their members and rights defenders working in a safe environment;
- Increased reporting of attacks faced by the targeted actors and more prompt and targeted response;
- Increased resilience of civil society organisations and human rights defenders against threats and attacks, including online.
Expected results
- Analytical activities and creation of a methodology to monitor the civic space in EU Member States, including activities to: encourage and facilitate cooperation and coordination between all actors potentially involved in such monitoring activities; enhance the capacity of staff – in particular within civil society organisations – to carry out monitoring activities;
- Mutual learning, exchange of good practices, including those that may be transferable to other countries;
- Communication activities, including dissemination of information and awareness raising about the state of play on civic space, including towards the EU level;
- Capacity building for civil society organisations on monitoring the civic space, including developments of tools and services to:
- Support and protect civil society organisations, their members as well as human rights defenders working to protect and promote EU values, facing threats and under attacks;
- Facilitate access to special procedures or channels to report threats and attacks, and document and analyse the environment in which civil society organisations work;
- Ensure that existing victim support services and emergency helplines are available and tailored to individuals working for civil society organisations and persons close to them when their safety is under a credible actual or potential risk due to their work.
- Development of synergies and protocols of cooperation among the actors working to protect the civic space at local, regional, national and European level and between them and the national and European authorities.
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Eligibility Criteria
Regions / countries for funding
eligible entities
Education and training institution, International organization, Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) / Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Other, Private institution, incl. private company (private for profit), Public Body (national, regional and local; incl. EGTCs), Research Institution incl. University, Small and medium-sized enterprise (SME)
Mandatory partnership
No
Project Partnership
Proposals must be submitted by a consortium of at least 1 applicant (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities).
In order to be eligible the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:
- For lead applicants (i.e., the “Coordinator”): be non-profit legal entities (public or private bodies)
- For co-applicants: be non-profit or for profit legal entities (public or private bodies). Organisations which are for profit may apply only in partnership with private non-profit organisations
- be established in one of the eligible countries, i.e.:
- EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories (OCTs))
Specific cases:
- Natural persons are NOT eligible (with the exception of selfemployed persons, i.e. sole traders, where the company does not have legal personality separate from that of the natural person).
- International organisations are eligible. The rules on eligible countries do not apply to them.
- Entities which do not have legal personality under their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees for the protection of the EU financial interests equivalent to that offered by legal persons.
- EU bodies (with the exception of the European Commission Joint Research Centre) can NOT be part of the consortium.
- Entities composed of members may participate as ‘sole beneficiaries’ or ‘beneficiaries without legal personality'. Please note that if the action will be implemented by the members, they should also participate (either as beneficiaries or as affiliated entities, otherwise their costs will NOT be eligible).
other eligibility criteria
Other eligibility conditions:
- Activities must take place in any of the eligible countries (EU Member States);
- The EU grant applied for cannot be lower than EUR 75 000;
- The project can be either national or transnational; the application may involve one or more organisations (lead applicant and co-applicants). Transnational projects are particularly encouraged.
- Financial support to third parties is not allowed.
Additional information
Topics
Relevance for EU Macro-Region
EUSAIR - EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region, EUSALP - EU Strategy for the Alpine Space, EUSBSR - EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, EUSDR - EU Strategy for the Danube Region
UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs)
project duration
between 12 and 24 months
Additional Information
Proposals must be submitted electronically via the Funding & Tenders Portal Electronic Submission System (accessible via the Topic page in the Search Funding & Tenders section). Paper submissions are NOT possible.
Proposals (including annexes and supporting documents) must be submitted using the forms provided inside the Submission System (NOT the documents available on the Topic page — they are only for information).
Proposals must be complete and contain all the requested information and all required annexes and supporting documents:
- Application Form Part A — contains administrative information about the participants (future coordinator, beneficiaries and affiliated entities) and the summarised budget for the project (to be filled in directly online)
- Application Form Part B — contains the technical description of the project (to be downloaded from the Portal Submission System, completed and then assembled and re-uploaded)
- Part C contains additional project data and the project’s contribution to EU programme key performance indicators (to be filled in directly online)
- mandatory annexes (templates available to be downloaded from the Portal Submission System, completed, assembled and re-uploaded):
- detailed budget table/calculator: not applicable
- supporting documents (to be uploaded):
- CVs (standard) of core project team;
- the activity reports of last year (n/a for newly established organisations);
- a list of previous projects (key projects for the last 4 years) (template available in Part B) (n/a for newly established organisations);
- for any of the participants implementing activities involving children (persons under the age of 18): their child protection policy covering the four areas described in the Keeping Children Safe Child Safeguarding Standards.
Proposals are limited to maximum 70 pages (Part B).
Call documents
CERV-2024-CHAR-LITI call documentCERV-2024-CHAR-LITI call document(556kB)
Contact
+43 1 531 15–202907
ernst.holzinger@bka.gv.at
Website
CERV Contact Points 2021-2027
Website
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