About

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is inviting civil society organizations (CSOs), to submit proposals to participate actively in amplifying the impact of human rights advocacy, inclusion, engagement, and awareness initiatives.

The Programme focuses on strengthening the human rights of vulnerable populations in Malawi by empowering civil society to effectively represent, access and defend the rights of vulnerable groups including women, key populations and young people so that they are enabled and effectively resourced to lead human rights service delivery, advocate for and enjoy rights, and overcome social and structural barriers to human rights. A key element of this initiative is the creation of mechanisms for promoting and protecting the rights of marginalized women, children, people with disabilities including persons with albinism and key populations. This includes increasing public awareness campaigns on legal, citizen and human rights.

The intervention seeks to engage with formal and informal media and other awareness channels to ensure maximum coverage throughout the sensitization campaigns. It also supports the creation of protection mechanisms and measures for civil society actors, including at-risk human rights defenders and media actors in order to open up the space for the key and vulnerable community for dialogue and better coordination of a platform. This will in turn create demands and compliance with human rights. 

Additionally, the project coordinates CSOs to provide access to sexual and reproductive health rights services, legal protection and economic empowerment for survivors of gender-based violence, particularly women and children in Mangochi and Nkhotakhota.

The goal is to identify and discuss key legal, policy and human rights challenges, and to establish and promote a robust platform for engagement between stakeholders such as government, traditional leaders and CSOs in the promotion of the rights of women, children, persons living with HIV/AIDS, persons with disabilities and key populations. The project specifically focuses on engaging the public to ‘leave no one behind-the furthest behind first’, through consultations with NGO/CSO representatives working in communities especially at the grassroots level.

Objectives

• The main objective of the grant selection process is to identify NGO/CSOs with operational presence and capacities to engage in advocacy and awareness campaigns on human rights for key and vulnerable populations in Malawi preferably including Mangochi and/or Nkhotakhota districts.

• NGO/CSOs are requested to submit one proposal specifying which districts they will cover in their advocacy work and why (a maximum of 3 districts). Each proposal should demonstrate the specific added value the NGO/CSO can deliver in specified districts.

Funding Information

• The budget should be detailed, complete, rational and realistic, and must not exceed the equivalent of USD 25,000.

Duration 

• The project duration will not go beyond 6 months, counted from the date of the contract signature to the date when all relevant activities have been successfully completed.

Expected Outputs/Deliverables

• Provide human rights and Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Gender Expression (SOGIE) based trainings and information raising awareness services, to the public and relevant stakeholders in cooperation and consultation with other key population led CSOs/NGOs.

• Provide counselling to key and vulnerable populations in contact with the law (as victims, witnesses or perpetrators) including preparation of victim reports and related expert assessments where relevant. 

• Develop a multi-media information and advocacy campaign on legal rights, human rights, and social support services for key and vulnerable persons including adaptation of existing materials and development of new materials. 

• In conjunction with UNDP conduct knowledge and awareness-raising sessions for community members, community-based groups and traditional leaders on legal rights, legal services, human rights, and constitutional/legal issues facing women, children in marriages, persons living with HIV/AIDS, LGBTQI populations, older persons, persons with disabilities and key populations.

Target Groups 

• The Project’s major goals are to strengthen institutional capacity to protect human rights while enabling vulnerable groups to ventilate their rights. Therefore, the Project shall target both duty bearers (represented mainly by State institutions and traditional leaders) and rights holders (represented by the general population with particular focus on vulnerable groups, such as women, children generally, children in marriage, the youth population, prisoners, indigent people, persons with albinism, PWDs, the LGBTQI community, persons in remote areas). The major dynamics of the relationship between rights holders and duty bearers are the lack of trust and low satisfaction of rights holders in the human rights-related services provided by duty bearers, who lack the capacity to deliver quality services, conduct dialogue with rights holders, and enforce accountability. Both groups are eager to effect change but require external facilitation and capacity building for that to occur. The Project will assist in formulating and implementing mutually agreeable solutions by brokering a partnership between rights holders and duty bearers, increasing awareness and capacity on specific subject matters, and planning and developing policies that ensure inclusive participation. The Project will focus on districts with the highest human rights and justice demands.

Eligibility

• The NGOs must meet the following criteria to be eligible for selection. 

  • Be legally registered as NGO/CSO and in possession of a valid registration certificate. 

  • Possess a mandate and founding document in line with the activities for which the funds are being sought. 

  • Must have a minimum of 5 years’ experience in implementing projects related to human rights, legal advocacy, or support services for key and vulnerable populations.

  • Have an established office and experience in implementing key and vulnerable populations, Human rights or similar/related interventions and activities.

Post Date: May 14, 2024