On Friday, 17 January, an Info Session on the Call for Proposals under the Program for Support to Civil Society for Public Advocacy, launched by the Belgrade Open School (BOS) in partnership with the Belgrade Fund for Political Excellence (BFPE) and the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN Serbia), was held in front of more than 40 representatives and a representative of civil society organizations. The program is being implemented under the project "Active Citizens - Better Society: Advocacy for Cooperation and Democratic Development", supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The second Call will support 10 civil society organizations through project support (which includes mentoring and financial support). The Program for Supporting civil society organizations for Advocacy was launched with the aim of improving advocacy practices in Serbia and bringing civil society advocacy activities closer to citizens. The program encourages civil society organizations to take an innovative approach to designing and implementing advocacy campaigns and building their own capacity through advocacy in practice.

The general and specific objectives of the project were presented to the attendees and special attention was paid to the expected results. Civil society organizations submitting a project proposal must bear in mind the importance of actively involving citizens in advocacy campaigns, raising citizens' awareness of the importance of participation in the decision-making process, enhancing cooperation between civil society organizations and the media, and more.

Representatives of the organizations were also introduced to the thematic areas of the program, the rules and conditions for participation, as well as the importance of project support. A brief look at last year's approved projects clarified additional concerns.

This is the second Call under the Program, under which 10 civil society organizations will be supported through project support. The deadline for submission of project proposals is Thursday, January 30, 2020, by 23 hours and 59 minutes, and more information can be found HERE.