MAKING OUR VOICES RING OUT!
The Feminists in Action initiative is a powerful mechanism for empowering feminist organisations in Global South to take action towards building a world that is more respectful of the rights of women and girls.
This initiative is supported by:
WHAT IS THE POINT OF SUPPORTING FEMINIST ORGANIZATIONS?
The right to education, the right to control one’s own body, the fight against discrimination and gender-based violence… Women around the world are organising to defend their rights and respond to urgent and often difficult realities.
In this struggle, civil society organisations play an essential role and need secure, flexible, and predictable funding to create lasting change.
Today, they face a worrying rollback in women’s rights: the rise of anti-rights movements, legal restrictions, and political pressure are all weakening their work, at precisely the moment when their needs are growing and their resources are shrinking.
Solidarity with organisations defending women’s rights in the countries of the Global South is a shared responsibility that requires concrete commitments!
OUR GOALS
SUPPORT
Provide civil society organisations (CSOs) with flexible and secure financial resources to strengthen structures and implement projects at local, regional and national levels.
STRENGTHEN
Build the technical and organisational capacities of feminist CSOs so they can advance women’s rights and drive lasting change in attitudes, institutions, and laws, both locally and internationally.
GATHER
Foster and strengthen networks and alliances among feminist organisations so they can share knowledge and expertise, amplify their messages, lead joint and effective advocacy initiatives, and promote feminist solidarity in practice.
4 AREAS OF ACTIVITY
The struggles we support: necessary, complementary, transformative
1
Sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR)
Faced with attacks on women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights, and against a backdrop of political, economic, and health crises, feminist CSOs are mobilising to improve access to reproductive health services, information, and education. They run awareness campaigns promoting informed and fulfilling sexuality, distribute menstrual kits, fight female genital mutilation, and work to prevent early pregnancies. Through their work, they defend women’s fundamental right to make free decisions about their own bodies.
2
The fight against gender-based violence
In the face of backlash against hard-won women’s rights and the rise of reactionary movements, the fight against gender-based violence (GBV) remains a major priority. Feminist CSOs work to transform societies and break impunity through awareness campaigns, safe spaces for women to speak and be heard, and holistic support for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence.
3
Women’s economic empowerment
Economic insecurity and dependence, which disproportionately affect women worldwide, are major obstacles to their empowerment and personal fulfillment. CSOs work to promote women’s financial independence by supporting professional development, backing economic initiatives, and defending workplace rights so women can break free from patriarchal constraints.
4
aCCESS TO RIGHTS
When the law is used to uphold systems of oppression, the rights of women and of all people affected by intersecting forms of discrimination are put at risk. To address discrimination at its root, feminist organisations raise awareness of women’s rights and of the means to defend them, mobilise legal expertise, and advocate for access to institutions that ensure the effective application of the law.
A fundamentally FEMINIST INITIATIVE
Since feminist organisations are key players in social change, Feminists in Action has set itself the task of expanding the scope of its activities and consolidating its networks.
The initiative operates across 30 Southern countries where advancing women’s rights is vital and focuses particularly on the specific needs of smaller organisations that have difficulty accessing funding. We aim to provide feminist organisations on the ground with financial resources, but also support their capacity to structure themselves, develop their technical skills and assist in the implementation of joint advocacy activities. Non-competitive calls for expressions of interest between organisations, diversity of profiles, cooperation between members and networking: feminist principles permeate the whole initiative.
A few figures
the number of grants awarded to feminist organizations
the total amount of grants awarded to date
the number of countries in which projects are funded
the blog
HAYAT: The Only Safe Haven for Women Victims of Violence in the Gaza Strip
The CWLRCP association operates the only safe haven for survivors of violence in the Gaza Strip.
Reproductive Health in Benin: Speaking Out as the First Act of Freedom
With support from Feminists in Action, the organization is implementing the Project to Empower Girls and Young Women Aged 10 to 35 Through Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) in the Ouémé and Plateau departments.
Togo: TCHOWOURE and A2FHV-S’s commitment to reproductive health in the Savanes region
In the Savanes region of Togo, the association TCHOWOURE , based in Dapaong, works to defend the bodily autonomy and fundamental rights of women and
Women cannot be protected with shrinking budgets
The latest report from UN Women highlights a worrying reality: while violence against women and girls remains widespread, the organizations that support them are seeing their funding collapse.
Where is the funding for feminist organizations?
This is the question addressed in AWID’s latest report. Between 2021 and 2023, 1,174 feminist and women’s rights organizations in 128 countries shared their experiences by responding to the survey “Where is the money for feminist organizations?.” Their message is clear: the funding that supports their struggles is becoming increasingly scarce.
New energy, new challenges: Feminists in Action continues!
The second phase of the Feminists in Action project is officially launched! The consortium partners are once again joining forces.