credibility

The objective of the project was to strengthen national and regional platforms of civil society organizations and to increase their influence. The project was based on the strategy that civil society platforms should play an important role in national, regional, and international negotiations. The project aimed to democratize debates on globalization and to enhance the influence of national and regional platforms on public policy-making. The project goals were: to develop national and regional NGO platforms; to enhance CSO advocacy skills through six exercises in nongovernmental diplomacy; the launch of an International NGO Resource Center; and the institutionalization and consolidation of the International Forum of National NGO Platforms. The project worked with national NGO platforms in Brazil, Chile, Senegal and the USA as well as regional platforms based in West Africa, India and Central Africa.

The goal of the project was to increase and strengthen political participation and citizenship among women within democratically elected institutions before, during, and after the election process of 2010. The underlying idea was to make use of this election period as a timeframe allowing for public debate in order to raise awareness among influential parties, such as the media and women leaders, of their rights in order to better know and to assert these rights by creating a National Forum.

The aim of the project was to build on the peace process in Burundi and consolidate democratic principles through peaceful elections by encouraging the population in three heavily war-affected provinces to vote in a reflected and enlightened manner and by further encouraging these populations to express their needs and aspirations in order to be included in the electoral programmes of the political parties.

The project’s objective was to enhance the quality of rural women’s political participation by raising their awareness of fundamental rights; the advantages of democracy and the importance of participation. The grantee aimed to mobilize and motivate rural women to actively participate in political life, and to organize them to take collective efforts on their own behalf.  Activities were targeted at both women and men in 680 communities in Sindh Province, Pakistan, and included data collection, participatory meetings, extensive media campaigns and social gatherings to stimulate community discussion, and the organization of local groups to promote and protect women’s rights. The project was relevant, given the fact that democratic participation in Pakistan, especially of women, was low. Underlying causes included the male-dominated social system, low awareness of fundamental freedoms and democratic rights, and a general lack of confidence in democratic processes.

The objective of the project was to promote democratic culture at all levels in society irrespective of social status, political, religious, ethnic or regional allegiance. Activities included awareness-raising of rural populations on the concept of democracy; training of local elites on participatory democracy, human rights and citizenship; information, education and communication to promote participation in the 2010 presidential elections and in local elections; and debates in secondary and high schools on democratic values and principles. While the grantee responded to a priority need in Togo for the development of a democratic culture, significant weaknesses in design and implementation limited the project’s relevance. Important stakeholders such as the judicial and law-enforcement sectors were not addressed by the project’s actions and there were months-long periods when very few activities were implemented.

The project was related to the establishment in Burundi of a National Consultation Steering Committee (NCSC) made up of government, UN and civil society representatives and tasked with addressing issues of national reconciliation and accountability for past large-scale human rights violations. The overall goal of the project was “to help the NCSC to achieve its mandate and promote transitional justice”

The project was related to the establishment in Burundi of a National Consultation Steering Committee (NCSC) made up of government, UN and civil society representatives and tasked with addressing issues of national reconciliation and accountability for past large-scale human rights violations. The overall goal of the project was “to help the NCSC to achieve its mandate and promote transitional justice”