OSI Grants for Women's NGOs

[Katalin Fabian]

-- 
Katalin Fábián
Lafayette College
Department of Government and Law
Kirby Hall 103
Easton, PA 18042-1780

Tel: (610) 330-5392
Fax: (610) 330-5397




7)Call for Proposals: Media Campaign to Combat Violence Against Women/
Various
Locations

Call for proposal of OSI - Network Women's Program and Network Media Program
Grant Program for Women's NGOs and Media Representatives/Journalists To
Organize
Media Campaign to Combat Violence Against Women

Introduction
The right to be free from violence is a fundamental human right. Violence
against women is gender-based violence that results in physical, sexual or
psychological harm or suffering to women. Gender motivated violence is an
abuse
of women's human rights and is a primary cause and symptom of women's
unequal
status in society.  While violence against women during communism was
prevalent,
it has risen since the transition. In the post communist era, women's
participation in the public sphere has deteriorated as evidenced by rising
unemployment, decreased participation in politics and increased poverty.
This
decrease in women's status has also led to an increase in violence against
women.  The hidden nature of the problem makes the exact incidence of
violence
difficult to ascertain.

Media - if used in an appropriate manner - is the ideal tool to raise public
awareness of this problem. The media has the power to reach out to millions
of
people and it should be used for reporting reality, not only the sensational
stories. The public is informed and influenced by the media so it should be
ensured that it makes the right impact, sends the right messages and does
not
sensationalize the issue disproportionately. However, the presentation of
violence against women in the media, especially in the transition countries,
is
not as helpful as it should be.

Background
The Network Women's Program in cooperation with the Network Media Program is
running a grant program to support Women NGOs in organizing national public
awareness campaigns on violence against women using all the levels of the
media.
The timing of the public awareness campaigns should be part of the
internationally organized 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence that
runs
from November 25 -December 10 every year. It was first initiated in 1991 by
the
First Women's Global Leadership Institute. The UN General Assembly passed a
resolution last year that officially designates November 25 International
day
for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

The Aim of the Grant Program
The Network Women's Program and the Network Media Program started a pilot
grant
project in 2000 as a first step of a long term project on violence against
women
and the role of the media in public awareness raising. Based on the
experience
of the submitted proposals and campaigns the grant program is re-announced
in
2001. However, this year a workshop component will be included into the
project
in order to build the capacity of the women NGOs and to improve the quality
of
the media campaigns.

Applicants with the best media campaign project proposals will be invited to
this workshop that will include the analysis of the effectiveness of last
year's
projects/campaigns. Participants of the workshop will be introduced to
different
approaches to the planning, implementation, tools and effectiveness of media
campaigns. Applicants should be ready to participate in this workshop and
improve their media relations and campaigning skills. After this event a
possibility will be offered to the participants to finalize their project
proposals, and also to include new ideas that may occur during the workshop.

As we would like to ensure that the grant program is an efficient way of
helping
women's groups learn how to access the media and promote their messages,
attending the workshop is a condition to participating in the grant
competition.

Via this grant project we would like to encourage and support NGOs to take
part
in the global 16 days campaign. The focus of the campaign should be violence
against women with the following aims:
*Changing attitudes and behaviors that perpetuate violence
*Motivating governments to develop and/or change policies, legislation, and
practices to prevent violence against women and girls;
*Strengthening the capacity of the civil society organizations to
effectively
advocate for and implement violence prevention programs.
(For specific and detailed ideas check the 16 Days of Activism Against
Gender
Violence website: http://www.cwgl.rutgers.edu/16daysgen/index.htm)

Applicant Eligibility to the Media Campaign Grant
The precondition of getting a grant is the collaboration of two or more
NGOs,
plus one media partner with in-kind contribution, such as free space in the
newspaper, free time in the radio or TV channel, from each country. The
participant NGO does not necessarily have to be a women NGO, others (like
human
rights or minority NGOs)can participate as well. The competition will be
announced only to those NGOs that have already been active in the field of
domestic violence.

Geographical eligibility: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and
Herzegovina,
Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Guatemala, Haiti,
Hungary,
Indonesia, Kazakstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia,
Moldova,
Mongolia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, South Africa,
Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Yugoslavia.

The media campaign should be completed between November 25 - December 10,
2001.
All applications must be written in English. Each organization applying to
the
NWP Media Campaign Grant Program should submit the following documentation
in
addition to the Applicant Information Form:
*A one-two page summary of the past and present activities of the
organization
(including work in the field of violence against women, campaign organizing
experience, and relevant training).
*A two-five pages long proposal describing the objectives of the proposed
project, the project activities, the timing* and the expected outcomes
(specific
results, changes and differences the project would make).
*A one-page impact assessment plan describing how the results of the project
will be monitored and how progress will be measured. Grantees should be able
to
provide estimates of actual numbers of people who will be exposed to the
campaign, and to describe in what ways, after the campaign, they will select
a
sample of this larger number to query about changes in people's awareness,
attitudes and/or behavior related to the problem of violence against women.
Assessment such as this can be accomplished by using questionnaires,
surveys, or
taped in-person interviews in which people discuss their responses to the
campaign.
*Detailed budget and narrative that clearly explains individual line
items(pls
be modest and realistic). In case of partial funding please indicate the
other
donors that have already provided funds or agreed to support the project.
*Commitment of the media partner.

The amount of requested funding can be up to 5000 USD.
If there are more applicants from the same country, they are encouraged to
cooperate in order to organize a broader/country-wide campaign. In such a
case
the requested fund can be higher than 5000 USD.*

Selection criteria and Procedures:
The selection will be done by the selection committee composed of media
campaign
experts*, the members of the Network Women's Program, the Network Media
Program
and the UNIFEM Trust Fund. The selection will be made with special emphasis
on
the potential impact described in the assessment plan, and the
sustainability
and the innovative nature of the project. The following will also be taken
into
consideration:
*Experience of applicant organizations with issues of violence
*Clarity and feasibility of proposed activities
*Degree of multi-agency cooperation at the local level, involvement of the
media
*Contribution from own/local or other sources.

Where to Send Applications
All applications should be submitted in ENGLISH (preferably electronically)
to
the Women's Program Coordinator of the National Foundation by March 25,
2001. In
case there is no Women's Program in the country of the applicant, the
proposal
should be sent to the Budapest office of the Open Society Institute -
Network
Women's Program.

Deadlines for the year 2001 Media Campaign small grants competition:

Announcement of the grant competition: February 16, 2001
Applications due to the Nat'l Foundations: March 25, 2001
NF recommendations due to the NWP: March 30, 2001
Award notification: April 10, 2001
Media Training: 2nd week of May, 2001
Receipt of grant amounts: June - July, 2001
Media Campaigns during the 16 days: November 25 - December 10,
2001
Reports due: January 31, 2002

Applications received after the application deadline will NOT be considered.

Grant Reports
All grant recipients will be required to submit a report by January 31,
2002, on
the success of the media campaign in the form of a two page description of
how
the grant was utilized, and a budget report. Grant recipients who do not
provide
reports on their projects will not be eligible to receive NWP grants in the
future.

For Further Information, and description of proposal format, please contact
Open Society Institute / Network Women's Program
1051 Budapest, Nádor u. 11, Hungary
Tel.: 361 327 3139, Fax: 361 327 3864
E-mail: womenpro at osi.hu
OSI - Network Women's Program and Network Media Program
Grant Program for Women's NGOs and Media Representatives/Journalists
To Organize Media Campaign to Combat Violence Against Women