COVID-19: Civil Society Resilience and Sustainability – Ukraine

Call for Project Proposals Funded by the European Commission

Program Description

In response to the challenges imposed on the Ukrainian society during the coronavirus outbreak, the Black Sea Trust for Regional Cooperation (BST) is launching a new call for proposals which aims to strengthen the capacity of Ukrainian civil society organizations (CSOs) and independent media in countering the negative impact of the outbreak on society. This call is part of the COVID-19: Civil Society Resilience and Sustainability regional action run by ERIM Europe and funded by the European Union. The project aims to support civil society, independent activists, and independent media to continue their work throughout and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eligibility

Project proposals should be initiated by civil society organizations legally registered in Ukraine and should limit their geographic scope to Ukraine. Under the thematic area, Advancing Independent Media, the call includes independent media organizations.

Under the current call, BST will support proposals that fall under one of the following thematic areas:

1. Advancing Independent Media (budget up to €35,000)

Under this thematic area, we are funding two types of projects:

  1. Continuing the supply of accurate information about the further evolution of the crisis and its impact  on different spheres of society;

  2. Debunking fake news through fact-checking and exposing cases of disinformation—a special focus will be placed on information about Eastern Ukraine and the coronavirus pandemic. These proposals should take into consideration current developments under the COVID-19 crisis, such as vaccination, pandemic fatigue, etc.

2. Exchange and cooperation grants (budget up to €30,000)

  • Sharing expertise among CSOs in different regions of Ukraine on how to develop appropriate strategies to effectively cope with a very different future operating environment;
  • Strengthening the capacity of the regional and national networks to be an active stakeholder in the regional and national fora related to their areas of activities;
  • Creating coalitions and networks to propose policies and laws that benefit the vulnerable groups most affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

3. Government oversight (budget up to €35,000)

  • Overseeing public procurement procedures, investments in the health sector, subsidies, and economic aid;
  • Drafting alternative public policies to contain the crisis and mitigate its economic and social effects;
  • Monitoring restrictions to human rights, media freedom, and personal privacy. This could be directly related to the increased use of digital surveillance tools.

4.  Media campaign, advocacy, and awareness-raising grants (budget up to €7,000)

  • Using media and advocacy campaigns to raise awareness of the difficulties faced by vulnerable groups during the pandemic and the laws and regulations that should be changed to support them in the future;
  • Sharing success stories of active citizens who find ways of helping people—how their idea works at the local level, how it can be brought to the national level, best practices on how to organize mutual assistance and support, etc.
Application Process

Proposals will be received on an ongoing basis, the first deadline being February 15, midnight. Priority will be given to organizations working in the areas outside Kyiv and those working in partnership with other organizations.

The award ceiling for each lot may only be exceeded by exceptional projects. Management costs (excluding experts) and administrative costs are cumulatively limited to 25 percent of the overall award. The purchase of personal protective equipment (PPE) for staff and final beneficiaries, as well as needed IT&C equipment and services, is allowable.

The minimum duration of a project (except media campaigns) is 6 months and the maximum duration is 12 months.

Project proposals must be sent to [email protected]. Please include in the Subject of the email Ukraine EC proposal.

To submit a project proposal, organizations must complete the forms below in English only:

Only proposals submitted using these forms will be taken into consideration.

For more information, please email us at [email protected].