GLOBAL FUND FOR WOMEN/ GENERAL SUPPORT GRANTS

Deadline: Open

The Balkan Trust for Democracy (BTD) is a 10-year, $36-million grantmaking initiative that supports democracy, good governance, and Euroatlantic integration in Southeastern Europe. This award-winning public-private partnership was created in 2003 by the German Marshall Fund of the United States, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.

Grantmaking helps put democracy into practice by building cooperative partnerships among stakeholders-citizens, government representatives, nongovernmental organizations, civic groups, and ethnic communities-to raise and resolve common issues.

BTD awards funds to indigenous civic groups, NGOs, media, think tanks, governments, and educational institutions in order to strengthen democratic structures in Southeastern Europe. It does this through two principal program areas:

Linking Citizens with Government, which comprises grants to local and national organizations that work to improve citizen engagement with government; that encourage participatory decision-making and problem-solving; and that promote active citizenship, political reform, civic education, monitoring of government performance, and other creative and effective projects related to democratic consolidation

Regional Cooperation and Collaboration, which refers to grants that fit the criteria above, and that aim to foster cross-border and region-wide efforts to share best practices, address common problems of democratic development, and build networks among governments, NGOs, civic initiatives, and other institutions working to improve cooperation throughout the region

Eligibility

Applicants must be civic groups, NGOs, local or national governments, educational institutions, or media registered in: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Moldova, Romania, Serbia. Individuals and political parties may not apply. Non-indigenous organizations may not apply. Cooperative projects between indigenous and non-indigenous organizations will be considered, on the condition that non-indigenous administrative costs will not receive BTD support.

BTD grants generally range from $5,000 and $50,000, with most grants falling between $15,000 and $25,000. BTD can support multi-year projects, renewable on an annual basis contingent upon satisfactory interim reports and performance.

There are no application deadlines. Project proposals are accepted on a rolling basis and grant decisions are made monthly. Final approval will be made by a grantmaking committee or, if over $25,000, by the German Marshall Fund’s Board of Trustees.

For more info about the project visit: http://www.gmfus.org/grants-fellowships/grantmaking-programs/balkan-trust-for-democracy