US amends small grants program

The United States embassy has introduced changes to the Democracy Commission Small Grants Program for Azerbaijan.

The program, implemented since 1997, allows local non-government organizations to implement projects aimed at democratic development with US funding and technical assistance. Under the changes that the embassy explained by the 2008 presidential elections, NGOs will be able to submit projects concerning democracy and elections throughout the year instead of twice a year. Moreover, the rules for regional NGOs’ participation in the program have been simplified, according to the changes announced at a news conference on Monday.

“A strong civil society is the backbone of democracy. America is confident that the projects it is implementing in Azerbaijan will promote democracy, free and strong civil society,” said US ambassador Anne Derse, expressing hope that the introduced changes would serve the people.

US grants will be mainly channeled into projects on supporting peaceful and fair resolution of conflicts, increasing individual and collective responsibility for environmental protection and promoting democratic conduct of elections. The embassy hopes the initiatives will produce results in a short time.

The Democracy Commission Small Grants Program seeks to support development of Azerbaijan’s democratic institutions and civil society by awarding on competitive bases small project grants not exceeding $24,000 to Azerbaijani nonprofit, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), nonprofit community based organizations (CBOs) and other nonprofit associations and community groups as well as independent local media organizations. The 2008 budget of the program is $350,000.*