U.S. EMBASSY ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO ITS SMALL GRANTS PROGRAM
The United States Embassy in Azerbaijan announced changes to its Democracy Commission Small Grants Program.
“We hope that new rules will encourage larger numbers of non-governmental organizations to mobilize their skills and opportunities for projects”, US Ambassador Anne Derse told a Monday news conference at American Center, Baku.
The ambassador said eligible organizations may submit their grant proposals to be considered funding by the commission at any time.
The purpose of these changes is to make the program more accessible to civil society organizations from all regions of the country and to allow applicants for sufficient amount of time to develop competitive, high quality projects that best utilize their skill and unique expertise.
The United States is interested in the development of civil society in Azerbaijan and will continue promoting the process, Derse said.
The Democracy Commission is interested in funding strong projects in diverse topic areas that promote democratic reform in the country.
Since 1997, the Embassy has provided more than $2.4 million in project grants to nongovernmental, nonprofit organizations through its Democracy Commission Program. More than two hundred organizations have received grants to implement 240 projects.
In 2008, $350,000 is expected to be assigned.
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