The Aswatona Fund for Media Development, a 1.5m Euro multi-partner regional funding initiative to enhance independent media in the Maghreb and the Mashreq, has launched its third call for grant proposals in support of community media development.
The fund, which is supported by the European Union, aims to support pluralism in the media, particularly through community radio, and to strengthen the voices of women, youth and remote communities and marginalized groups. In previous funding rounds, grants have been awarded to 88 civil society organisations in Jordan (6), Syria (4), the Occupied Palestinian Territories (16), Egypt (9), Lebanon (2), Tunisia (13), Algeria (3) and Morocco (35).
Mohamed Yassine Aabbar of Association Initiatives Citoyennes, Morocco, said: “The Aswatona Fund gave us the opportunity to launch our community radio station, the first in Marrakesh region. Now we are part of a big family of community radios sharing the objectives of giving a voice for people without voices.”
Nacyb Allouchi of Association Rayhana, Tunisia, said: “The grant had a significant impact on the capacity of women active in our radio club and the development of our online radio. It also enabled us to produce audiovisual awareness spots supporting our environmental and health education program in schools.”
The Aswatona Fund offers grants for five types of action: exchanges of experience and good practice; audience development and sustainability; cultural and social action media; promotion of media policy dialogue; and network development and solidarity. The fund is open to locally-based, independent media and civil society organisations, plus key stakeholders in community media development.
Organisations eligible to apply to the Fund must be legally registered entities, not run for profit, not affiliated with any political party or religious organisation, and primarily working in one or more of the following countries: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Syria or Tunisia.
The Fund is a partnership project of Community Media Solutions (UK), Community Media Network (Jordan), Andalus Institute for Tolerance and Anti-Violence Studies (Egypt), Holy Land Trust (Palestine), and Forum Alternatives du Maroc, in association with World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC). It is part of the European Union funded programme “Media and culture for development” which supports the efforts of the Southern Mediterranean countries’ in building deep-rooted democracy and to contribute to their sustainable economic, social and human development, through regional co-operation in the fields of media and culture.
For further information see:
www.aswatona.net/fund
