Feminist Opportunity Now : a project to strengthen feminist organizations fighting gender-based violence worldwide
Jessica is Project Manager at Empow’Her and Focal Point for the Feminist Opportunities Now (FON) project. She supervises the Empow’Her team in charge of the project, made up of three other people: Dalila, an expert on gender-based violence, Louise, an expert on gender, and Coline, an entrepreneurial support officer.
How was the project born ?
The genesis of the project was a French diplomatic initiative between the Agence française de développement (AFD) and the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEAE) who have jointly created the Fonds de Soutien aux Organisations Féministes (FSOF) in 2019. This funding mechanism enables funds to be channeled each year into different sectors, to strengthen feminist organizations worldwide and promote gender equality.
It was within the framework of this French feminist fund that the Feminist Opportunities Now project came into being in 2021, supported by a Consortium of partners. Led by the Africa office of Planning Familial International The group is completed by Médecins du Monde France, the Fédération Internationale des Droits de l’Homme (FIDH) and the Indian NGO Crea.
The project, which began in June 2022 and will run until September 2026, has a total budget of 14 million euros and is dedicated to strengthening feminist organizations in 10 target countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Niger, Kenya, Ethiopia, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, as well as Mexico and Colombia.
50% of the total budget will be redistributed to local organizations involved in the fight against gender-based violence (GBV) via dedicated funding desks, while the remainder will be used to support and strengthen these women’s organizations.
The project was therefore born of a joint desire on the part of all the partners to implement a project combining direct funding and dedicated support for local feminist organizations that are often poorly identified and under-supported, yet essential to the advent of a more egalitarian society.
What activities will Empow'Her be putting on ?
“Beyond the capitalization work and the general implementation of the project by the Consortium, Empow’Her will be particularly involved in 3 activities :
- The development and delivery of training courses to strengthen the skills of local organizations through sessions tailored to their needs (governance, organization, financing, human resources, etc.);
- Support for innovative projects via a dedicated incubation program, aimed at feminist organizations wishing to develop an entrepreneurial aspect to their activities ;
- Financial and organizational support for existing third places in the 10 target countries, to secure spaces for exchange and dialogue on feminism and the fight against gender-based violence, and to develop their activities (events, networking, etc.).
Empow’Her will also help to identify and promote the networking of these local feminist organizations with the authorities, public institutions and, more broadly, all the players in the ecosystem (partners, donors, etc.), so that their voices can be better heard and their rights defended.
How many organizations will be helped in concrete terms ?
More than 150 civil society organizations (CSOs) will benefit from grants, and more than 300 CSOs will receive training and easier access to networks and funding.
Empow’Her will also identify and support around 30 third places over the duration of the project, in order to create spaces for dialogue dedicated to the fight against GBV in the target countries.
What does this project mean for Empow’Her ?
Empow’Her wishes to apply its expertise and know-how in entrepreneurship and capacity building to organizations working on the issue of gender-based violence, in line with its feminist commitment.
Through financial and organizational support for civil society organizations, the very principle of empowerment lies at the heart of the Feminist Opportunities Now project, and thus echoes the values of Empow’Her.
It also means broadening Empow’Her’s core business, by targeting organizations, networks and an ecosystem. Through the FON project, methodologies and proposals will be shared with a wide range of players, enabling us to support a greater number of structures, learn from our exchanges, and engage in real reflection on the impact of our activities within the entrepreneurial and feminist ecosystem.
What's next ?
The Consortium partners met in Nairobi in January 2023 to officially launch the project.
Our teams are now actively working to set up the various funding windows, and to build the areas of intervention that will complete the support offered at the start of the 2023 school year.
