Emergency security grants for human rights organizations in the MENA region
Title
Emergency security grants for human rights organizations in the MENA region
Minority Rights Group is accepting applications for Emergency Security Grants from human rights organizations in Lebanon, Palestine, Morocco and Tunisia. These grants are designed to address the security needs of human rights organizations representing minorities and marginalized groups that face digital or physical threats or security risks due to their human rights work within a shrinking civic space. The grants aim to mitigate the impacts of various security breaches, crackdowns, harassments, and attacks of legal, physical, or digital nature and prevent their recurrence.
How to apply
Eligibility
For your application to be considered, the applicant must:
- Be a human rights or minority rights organization.
- Be a not-for-profit civil society organization (official registration is not necessary).
- Be based in one of the project countries: Lebanon, Palestine, Morocco, Tunisia.
- Have recently experienced an elevated or imminent security threat. The urgency of the risk that requires intervention must be clear. Risks can include security risks emanating from digital breaches, attacks against the infrastructures of minority rights organizations, arrests and prosecutions of human rights defenders due to their human rights work, verbal or physical threats against human rights defenders, or harassment.
- Be an organization that has a track record of working with disadvantaged ethnic, religious, or cultural minorities or marginalized groups such as migrants, refugees, LGBTI, or persons with disabilities, and rooted in these marginalized communities.
- Must have basic skills in project management, risk management and financial management.
- Be an organization with no public debt, comply with anti-corruption measures, and prove the absence of conflict of interest.
- Have the ability to receive funding, either through their own organization or an agreed upon alternative arrangement which aligns with approved protocol.
Eligible costs, budget available and timeframe
The grant can cover the costs of:
- Vital hardware or software to enhance the security of data or offices.
- Travel, accommodation and relocation costs for defenders under the pressure to relocate temporarily inside or outside the country.
- Legal fees to defend minority rights defenders facing judicial forms of persecution or who need to resort to the legal system to enhance their security.
- Support to families of defenders in imprisonment is also eligible for costs under this grant.
- Medical care for injured defenders.
- Any other costs that are vital to secure the lives and work of minority rights defenders living in insecure contexts.
The amount available for each project is between €1,000–3000, and the duration of the action may last up to a maximum of six months.
Selection criteria
- The urgency of the threat or risk that needs to be prevented or mitigated.
- The applicant should be able to show how the funds will contribute to the organization’s enhanced security and protection of its operations (and hence its sustainability).
- The funds must be used to alleviate the recent threat or risk and not to fund the organisation’s regular activities.
- The applicant must show that the organization will be able to continue work after the intervention is over.
- The request must not have been fully supported by another donor or national or international organization.
Submission process
Please provide in the application form a secure means of communication including but not limited to, encrypted message apps (WhatsApp/Signal) or encrypted emails (Tutanota/ProtonMail) to facilitate communication.
Treatment of information
The data will be treated confidentially in line with GDPR policies. Only MRG and its implementing partners will have access to the information provided in order to facilitate the selection process. These include The Civic Forum Institute in Palestine and Attalaki in Tunisia. For any questions on the application process, please contact us.
Apply
The hardship fund is intended for the benefit of human rights and minority rights non-profit organizations working to promote and protect the rights of minorities and marginalized communities.
All responses will be kept confidential.
Emergency Security Grants Application Form
The hardship fund is intended for the benefit of human rights and minority rights non-profit organizations working to promote and protect the rights of minorities and marginalized communities. It should only be used to alleviate a security hardship or elevated security risk, resulting from the restriction of civic space. It may cover expenses including travel, accommodation, living activities, physical and digital security, legal fees, medical care, relocation and support of minority rights defenders arbitrarily detained and/or their families. The grants cannot exceed €3,000 (the equivalent of this will be sent in the respective local currency). Please note that all these details will be kept confidential.
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Minority Rights Group is an international human rights organization working to ensure that disadvantaged minorities and indigenous peoples can make their voices heard.
Attalaki is the leading organization in Tunisia working on freedom of religion and belief and a key player in defending the rights of religious minorities and making their voices heard.
Civic Forum Institute (CFI) is a Palestinian non-governmental focused on building democracy and developing democratic institutions in Palestine.
This content was published in the context of the Minorities, Accountability and Civic Space (MACS) programme. Learn more >
MACS is funded by the European Union.