Brussels, June 13, 2024
The European Union aims to provide for an enabling environment for civil society to thrive independent of any obstacles by preventing restriction to civic space and the shutting down of civil society organisations by governments. The EU has partnered with a consortium of 9 civil society organisations (CSOs) who posses a wealth of experience monitoring, protecting and strengthening civic space and with members or chapters in over 190 countries. The organisations implementing the program are CIVICUS, Democracy Reporting International, European Partnership for Democracy, Forus, Hivos, Oxfam Novib (Oxfam), Protection International, Transparency International and Urgent Action Fund – Latin America and the Caribbean (UAF-LAC).
The partnership was signed by European Commissioner for International Partnerships Jutta Urpilainen and the leaders of the civil society organisations. During presentation,the EU Commissioner for International Partnerships indicated that;
“Civil society is a key partner for the European Union in delivering sustainable impact for communities through EU external action. With civil society partners, we promote democratic civic space, which is essential for the successful roll-out of our Global Gateway investment strategy. I am proud that we can launch together the new EU System for an Enabling Environment for Civil Society programme. It will help civil society to monitor potential restrictions on civic space, raise the alarm and respond proactively to threats to democracy.”
The EU System for an Enabling Environment for Civil Society is part of the Global Europe Civil Society Organisations programme and will complement and support the work done by EU Delegations in partner countries.
The European Union is a longstanding global champion for civil society as development actors and supports their engagement to contribute to democratic processes and achieve better development outcomes.
