Estonia

Objective

The objective of the Active Citizens Fund is: “Civil society and active citizenship strengthened and vulnerable groups empowered”. The Programme will seek to develop the long-term sustainability and capacity of the civil society sector, strengthening its role in promoting democratic participation, active citizenship and human rights, and empowerment of vulnerable groups.

Program structure

The Programme will be implemented by way of five open calls for proposals. In addition, there will be activities aimed at capacity building during project preparation and project implementation phases conducted by consortium partner NENO.

The projects funded through the Programme shall contribute to the following Outcomes:

1. Strengthened democratic culture and civic awareness
2. Increased support for human rights and equal treatment
3. Vulnerable groups empowered
4. Enhanced capacity and sustainability of civil society

Projects focusing on the following five areas are eligible for support:

• Democracy, active citizenship, good governance and transparency
• Human rights and equal treatment through combating any discrimination on the grounds of racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation or gender identity
• Social justice and inclusion of vulnerable groups
• Gender equality and gender-based violence
• Environment and climate change

Bilateral cooperation

The strengthening of bilateral relations and mutual knowledge and understanding by way of networking, exchange of experiences and shared results between civil society organisations (CSOs) and entities in the donor countries is an important priority for the Programme.

During the programme period match-making and networking opportunities will be made available through special calls.

Donor partnership projects, i.e. projects implemented in close cooperation with a project partner whose primary location is in one of the Donor States, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway will get additional scores in the evaluation process. Successful donor partnership projects will be given an opportunity to apply for additional funding during project implementation phase to enhance bilateral activities. Specific information on such measures will be available at a later date during the project implementation phase.

Fund operator

Open Estonia Foundation in cooperation with Network of Estonian Nonprofit Organizations.
Address: Estonia pst 5a, 10143 Tallinn
Phone: +372 615 5700
E-mail: acf@oef.org.ee