NCVO is to receive £350,000 from the UK government's Arab Partnership Fund to launch a project that will strengthen civil society in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya.
NCVO's Building Bridges project will work with organisations in the North African countries to improve standards of governance, capacity and management; facilitate support from government and international donors, and develop frameworks for structured policy-making with respective governments.
Organisations working with young people, women, human rights and social inclusion will be the focus of Building Bridges, says NCVO, which will work to provide tailored training and support for emerging civil society organisations in the three countries. NCVO will work with local partner the Arab NGO Network for Development and share learning through CIVICUS - the world alliance for citizen participation.
The £350,000 funding is based on a valuation of the project over three years and comes out of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development's joint Arab Partnership Fund launched in response to the Arab Spring on 8 February 2011. Initially a £5m pot, it was expanded in May 2011 to become a four-year £110m fund. Some £5.7m has been spent from the fund so far.
Sir Stuart Etherington, chief executive at NCVO, explained why the organisation has developed the Building Bridges scheme: "During the recent upheaval in the region many groups emerged out of the chaos, providing food and medical assistance to those in need. The challenge now is to help these groups consolidate their work and put the right structures in place so that civil society can help shape the fledgling democratisation process.
"Civil society networks have real value to add and a crucial role in emerging democracies and this project will support organisations to build their skills, share best practice and grow stronger together."
In June the Charity Commission revealed that it has held meetings with the new governments in Egypt and Libya to explore how it might help them develop effective regulation for each nation’s fledgling civil society sector.
