Call for Proposals - Civil Society Facility: Partnership actions - Empowerment of Women - Gender Agenda in Rural Development – Empowerment of Women in the Rural Society (GARD Project)

The overall objective of the CSF, of which this Call for Proposals forms part, is to strengthen civil society within a participative democracy, stimulating a civil society friendly ‘environment’ and culture.

The current Call for Proposals aims at developing strong regional partnerships between CSOs from the region themselves which are engaged in promoting gender equality together with their EU counterparts and public authorities

The specific objectives of this Call for Proposals are to:

• Enhance the transparency and the accountability of CSOs;

• Further reinforce the professional capacity of CSOs working on women rights;

• Organise CSOs so that they play an increasingly influential role in the formulation of public policy at local, national, regional and EU levels;

• Increase citizens’ awareness of their rights and duties as well as participation of citizens in civil society activities;

• Enhance cooperation and networking among CSOs from the beneficiary countries, and with CSOs from the EU in order to foster an intercultural dialogue;

• Increase understanding by CSOs of EU affairs and the accession process eventually leading to better dissemination of information;

• Assist CSOs in improving women’s rights, combating violence against women (both domestic as on the street and in promoting equal treatment.

Gender Agenda in Rural Development – Empowerment of Women in the Rural Society (GARD Project).