“Every day we read media stories about young people committing suicide, victims of domestic violence, child abuse and abandonment, divorce and honour killings, problems with street animals, environmental damage and other serious social problems. As a society, we must find new solutions to address these problems.

Axar.az reports that,this is a new program that has been developed by UAFA in order to support the development of a small group of NGOs/service providers that are meeting the social needs of vulnerable populations but who need help to grow and coordinate with other like-minded organisations.

UAFA would like to hear from NGOs and civil society organisations that provide services directly to the population in the areas of health, education, social welfare, (juvenile) justice, child protection, environment, unemployment, social inclusion, disability and gender.

Under this new program, UAFA will select 5-8 organisations that are ready to work with UAFA as transparent and accountable partners. We will create a new model of conduct for the sustainability of civil society organisations.

Selected organisations will receive training in the following:

• Financial accountability

• Ethics and standards of service delivery

• Monitoring & evaluation of service provision

• Advocacy & policy development

After training, selected organisations will be mentored by UAFA to put the trainings into practice.

UAFA will support the selected organisations to access potential funding, to improve their public image and to advocate on policy issues.

Selection criteria will be rigorous. You must be able to demonstrate the following:

• Commitment to social cause but politically neutral

• Transparency in financial management

• Track record in service provision that reaches vulnerable groups

• Understanding the policy framework in your specialist area

• Some evidence of writing or advocating on a particular policy issue

• Some evidence of cooperating with partners in your specialist sector

If you think that your organisation can meet these criteria, and you are ready to get involved in a program that may bring more positive benefits for civil society in future, then please contact [email protected]