Activities funded under the European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights

The European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights is the main dedicated EU budget for promoting human rights, democracy and the rule of law. In 2004 its resources amounted to over EUR 100 million, to fund a wide range of projects in 32 countries covering four priority areas, the promotion of democracy, the rule of law and good governance, abolition of the death penalty, combating torture and impunity, support for the international criminal tribunals and the International Criminal Court, combating racism and xenophobia and discrimination against minorities, as well as the protection of the rights of indigenous peoples.

At the end of June 2005, the EIDHR was supporting more than 1000 projects around the world, covering the full range of priorities as set out in the basic regulations and in the programming document. Activities have been taking place at country level, regional level or globally. From April 2004, management of EIDHR country level projects was decentralised from Brussels to EC delegations as part of the deconcentration process. Dialogue between organisations implementing activities and the EC now takes place locally, which enables more effective sharing of information and networking between EIDHR partners, as well as with EU Missions and EC Delegations.

As in previous years, the selection of new projects continued in three different ways:

Projects identified through global calls for proposals

Five global calls for proposals were launched during July and August 2004. One call aimed to support International Justice with a budget of EUR 4.7 million, another the abolition of the death penalty with a budget of EUR 2 million. The third was aimed at strengthening Burmese civil society with a budget of EUR 1.5 million.

Two calls addressed torture, one for activities to prevent the use of torture with a budget of EUR 6 million, the other for the rehabilitation of victims of torture with a budget of EUR 10 million. In January 2005 a further three calls were launched, one in support of indigenous peoples with a budget of EUR 5.7 million, another to select projects fighting racism & xenophobia with a budget of EUR 5 million, and finally a call for regional Human Rights Masters Programmes with a budget of EUR 5.5 million. The Commission will award grants to most of the successful proposals later in 2005.

Projects selected though country- specific calls for proposals

An amount of EUR 17.58 million was made available for calls for proposals launched by EC delegations in 40 countries. Such country-specific calls are launched to identify projects for smaller scale grants between EUR 10.000- EUR 100.000 and are normally open only to country-based organisations. In this way the EIDHR is able to support local civil society and define the precise priorities relevant to each country where these micro-projects are implemented. In 2004, 414 new project grants were awarded by EC delegations for EIDHR micro-projects.

Projects selected without a call for proposals

In 2004 27 projects were selected without a call for proposals, including Election Observation Missions, with an EU contribution of EUR 31.878.720. Major grants were made to organisations such as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Council of Europe, OSCE and the international tribunals. More information on election observation missions can be found in chapter 4.9.

A list of projects funded from the EIDHR budget during the reporting period can be found in Annex I.

Evaluation of completed EIDHR projects²⁰

In 2004, a study was commissioned by the EC to look into the results and impact of 48 macro projects funded under the EIDHR and completed between January 2002 and July 2003. The study was delivered in March 2005. Based on desk studies and 29 field visits, the study assessed whether projects achieved their objectives and took stock of their relevance in light of the needs of the country and the specific target groups.

The study also examined project methodology, sustainability, budget, cost-effectiveness and the management capacity of the implementing organisations. Projects included in the study covered most areas of EIDHR priorities and all regions. 58% of the organisations implementing the projects have their headquarters in the EU, 33 % in the countries included in the programme and 8% were implemented by UN agencies.

20 “Synthesis Report on the ex-post Assessment of EIDHR projects completed between January 2002 and July 2004” written by Plancenter Ltd and Tea Cegos

After combining results from the different evaluation criteria, including relevance and implementation aspects, the study showed that 70% of the projects scored excellent or good²¹in the assessment.

Overall, the study concluded that projects had clearly defined and strategically chosen beneficiaries (involved in the project activities) and target groups (those ultimately benefiting from the projects). Among beneficiaries, NGOs promoting human rights and democracy are key players, as well as journalists and the media. Government officials, including parliamentarians and police, are also involved in many EIDHR projects. Target groups are most often identified as citizens in general, human rights activists, minorities and children.

The study suggests that many organisations implementing projects have a limited understanding of the EIDHR as a global programme. Furthermore beneficiaries and target groups should be more involved in needs assessment and formulation of projects proposals, as well as in the follow-up and evaluation. Potential synergies with other EC or non-EC funded activities in related areas are not explored sufficiently.

Asked about their views on the EC as a donor, in comparison to other donors, a general picture emerged of the EC as lacking in flexibility. However, once funding is obtained, EC funding is perceived as carrying major advantages: the EU is seen as a major player in the field of democracy and human rights promotion in the world; EU funding is often substantial and implies political backing for the organisations.

The EIDHR in 2005-6

The EIDHR will be re-cast in 2005-6 into four major thematic campaigns designed to ensure that projects at the global, regional and country level reinforce each other.

21 The scale used is: A=Excellent, B=Good, C=Generally adequate with some good and poor aspects, D=Major problems and E=Failure