EGYPT: List of Organizations receiving direct funding from (NED) in 2009

According to the 2009 Annual Report, the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) gave direct grants to the following Organizations:

American Center for International Labor Solidarity
$318,757
To support freedom of association in Egypt through partnerships with four Labor Support Organizations (LSOs) to increase their capacity to advocate for and defend worker rights, strengthen respect for the rule of law, and build bridges between Egyptian workers and other labor movements. The Solidarity Center will support trainings for lawyers, an interactive website for journalists, a campaign for a new labor law, a strategic campaigning workshop, and roundtables with labor leaders from four countries.

Andalus Institute for Tolerance and Anti-Violence Studies (AITAS)
$48,900
To strengthen youth understanding of the Egyptian parliament and enhance regional activists’ use of new technologies as accountability tools. AITAS will conduct a series of workshops for 300 university students to raise their awareness of parliament’s functions and engage them in monitoring parliamentary committees. AITAS will also host 8 month-long internships for youth activists from the Middle East and North Africa to share its experiences using web-based technologies in monitoring efforts.

Arab Foundation for Supporting Civil Society (AFSCS)
$25,000
To promote the independence of civil society institutions and raise public awareness of their importance and the challenges they face through cooperation and support from the media. AFSCS will conduct four training workshops for a total of 100 journalists and representatives of civil society institutions on monitoring violations against civil society organizations, and extend its outreach on these efforts through a web site and newsletter focused on civil society issues.

Arab Society for Human Rights (ASHR)
$22,600
To promote legal awareness among journalists about freedom of expression under Egyptian laws and encourage greater and better informed media coverage of human rights issues. ASHR will conduct a series of six three-day training workshops in Alexandria on media law and the rights of media professionals for 80 journalists from the governorates of Giza, Port Said, Sohag, Ismailiya, Al-Sharkiya, Kafr Al Shaykh, and Marsa Matrouh.

Association for Women’s Total Advancement and Development (AWTAD)
$20,000
To strengthen a business association that links civic engagement to the private sector and targets young professionals. AWTAD will conduct two leadership development courses for Cairo-based young professionals to expand its membership base and offer ongoing professional development workshops to strengthen member involvement. For each course, AWTAD will lead an eight-week, one-on-one mentoring program for 25 mentees and established private sector professionals.

Association of the Egyptian Female Lawyers (AEFL)
$22,000
To strengthen women’s leadership and participation in the decision-making process within bar associations in the governorates of Giza, Beni Suef, Minya, and Qena. AEFL will train a cadre of women lawyers within local bar associations who will subsequently train an additional 100 female lawyers in each target governorate. Trainees will form a network to provide continued support to women lawyers seeking leadership positions within the bar association.

Bridge Center for Dialogue and Development (BTRD)
$25,000
To promote youth expression and engagement in community issues through new media. BTRD will train youth between the ages of 16 and 26 in the use of new and traditional media tools to report on issues facing their communities. BRTD will also create a website for human rights videos and new media campaigns in Egypt. The website will host trainees’ completed projects and provide a blog-like forum for them to engage in an ongoing dialogue on their projects.

Budgetary and Human Rights Observatory (BAHRO)
$25,000
To promote accountability and transparency, increase public awareness of the national budget, and engage civil society organizations in public budget monitoring and advocacy efforts. BAHRO will analyze and provide a mid-term evaluation of the projected national budget and fund allocations for Egypt’s five-year development plan (2008 -2012) versus actual expenditures and implementation of development initiatives.

Center for Egyptian Women’s Legal Assistance (CEWLA)
$34,400
To promote and engage youth in democratic dialogue and strengthen their oversight of political reform implementation. CEWLA will train 25 youth leaders on Egypt’s political reform plan and techniques for interacting with government officials. The youth will then conduct five half-day dialogue sessions with officials to monitor the implementation of proposed reforms in public political participation with a focus on youth and women’s participation.

Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE)
$187,569
To engage civil society organizations to participate in the democratic process by strengthening their capacity to advocate for free market legislative reform, and to build consensus on needed changes to the Egyptian legal environment to remove impediments to competition in a free market. CIPE will work with the Federation of Economic Development Associations (FEDA) to organize policy reform roundtables, draft policy position papers and an economic analysis report, and conduct policy and advocacy planning sessions for SME business associations.

El-hak Center for Democracy and Human Rights
$19,400
To raise young local journalists’ awareness of their rights in order to enable them to report more effectively on local community issues. El-hak will conduct eight workshops on journalists’ rights for a total of 200 young local journalists in the Gharbeya, Beni Suef, Qena, and Port Said governorates; establish a network of local journalists; and develop a newsletter and website for the exchange of best practices and professional advice.

Egyptian Center for the Right of Education.
$25,300
To strengthen an independent teachers network and enable its members to advocate for the welfare of teachers and lobby for reforms. ECER will conduct a training-of-trainers (TOT) workshop for 15 network members. Approximately five of the TOT participants will be selected to conduct two workshops on advocacy campaigns and collective bargaining. Each workshop will be attended by 30 member teachers.

Egyptian Democracy Institute (EDI)
$48,900
To promote accountability and transparency in parliament through public participation, and to build legislative capacity. EDI will produce quarterly monitoring reports and hold seminars to discuss the overall performance of Parliament and offer recommendations on legislation proposed in the People’s Assembly. EDI will monitor, collect, and document evidence of corruption in Cairo and Alexandria, as well as shortcomings in the delivery of public services in the governorates of the greater Cairo region and Alexandria to share with MPs representing those communities.

Egyptian Union of Liberal Youth (EULY)
$33,300
To expand the use of new media among youth activists for the promotion of democratic ideas and values. EULY will train 60 youth activists to use filmmaking for the dissemination of democratic ideas and values. The Union will lead a total of four two-month long training workshops in Cairo to build the political knowledge and technical filmmaking skills of participating youth involved in NGOs. Each participating NGO will then produce and distribute a short film about its organization’s mission or about an issue for which they are advocating.

Fares Organization for Social Care (FOSC)
$20,500
To promote democratic ideas and values among university students in Mansoura and build the capacity of a local NGO in Mansoura working to promote civic and political participation. FOSC will conduct a field study to assess Mansoura University students’ perceptions and knowledge of democratic ideas and values, train youth in the topics where their understanding is limited, and engage students in a theatrical production on political participation that will be presented in various youth centers across the city and surrounding districts.

Hukuk Elnas
$50,000
To promote the concept of street law in Egypt and the Middle East North Africa Region and to strengthen Egyptians’ awareness of their legal rights. Hukuk Elnas will create a web portal to raise Egyptians’ knowledge and awareness of their fundamental rights using simplified, colloquial language. The organization’s lawyers will provide pro-bono legal advice through a 24-hour telephone hotline and instant messaging. Hukuk Elnas will develop a training curriculum to share with other Egyptian and regional NGOs interested in promoting the concept of street law.

Human Development Association (HDA)
$20,000
To establish a cadre of young local journalists and lawyers in the Daqahliyah province who are able to monitor citizen rights in the media and courts, and to promote citizen engagement and public pressure on local authorities. HDA will train a cadre of 25 young local media professionals and 75 legal activists to monitor and support citizen rights, and encourage citizens to pursue their rights through a hotline for citizen complaints and monthly discussion forums.

Ibn Khaldun Center for Development Studies (ICDS)
$65,000
To disseminate information on civil society and democratization in the Arab world and promote democratic ideas and values. ICDS will publish a monthly newsletter and annual report on civil society and democratization in the Arab world, and will hold weekly discussion seminars on topics related to civil society and democratization. In addition, the center will contract an external evaluation consultant to review and assess ICDS’s programs and institutional needs and provide recommendations for strengthening the center.
International Center for Justice and Legal Support and Advocating (formerly known as Justice Association in Gharbeya)
$17,000
To strengthen women’s leadership within political parties in the West Delta region and to build the capacity of a civil society organization in the Gharbeya governorate. The Center will establish a political party women’s networking and professional development group to promote collaboration among women party members across ideological lines. The women’s forum will be supported by a series of professional development training workshops to enhance party women’s skills in legislative analysis and development, media outreach, and membership development.

Justice and Citizenship Center for Human Rights (JCCHR)
$20,000
To promote transparency and accountability of local government councils in the Minya governorate and to engage citizens in the decision-making process at the local level. JCCHR will observe and report on local council sessions, develop and administer surveys to local government officials and citizens, disseminate information to the public on local government activities, and organize discussions among local government officials, community leaders and media professionals.

Lawyers Union for Democratic and Legal Studies (LUDLS)
$20,000
To support freedom of association by strengthening young activists’ ability to express and organize themselves peacefully within the bounds of the law. LUDLS will train 250 youth activists on peaceful assembly and dispute resolution as well as produce a resource report on the these topics.

Mogtamaana for Development and Human Rights Association
$20,300
To promote transparency and accountability of local government councils and engage citizens in the decision-making process. Mogtamaana will pilot a local council monitoring program in the Giza governorate by observing and reporting on local council meetings, developing and administering surveys to local government officials and citizens, disseminating information to the public on local government activities, and organizing discussions between officials and citizens.

National Association for the Defense of Rights and Freedoms (NADRF)
$81,000
To build the capacity of grassroots community organizations in developing and managing programs promoting women’s political participation and strengthen the ability of women candidates for the 2010 parliamentary elections. NADRF will train provincial women candidates in the 2010 parliamentary elections and their campaign assistants in managing election campaigns. NADRF will train 30 women trainers (TOT) on leadership and management, who will then lead awareness seminars. NADRF will also conduct a comprehensive evaluation of its three-year program on women’s rights awareness.

One World Foundation for Development and Civil Society Care
$24,500
To raise awareness among local journalists in Beni Suef, Qena, and Ismailiya about government decentralization and specifically the role of journalists in the process. One World will conduct four workshops for a total of 95 local journalists in Qena, Beni Suef, and Ismailiya on the role of the media in supporting decentralization and promoting transparency in local government, and establish a cadre of media professionals supporting the decentralization process.

Our Hands for Comprehensive Development
$19,200
To engage Minya youth in civic activism and encourage youth-led initiatives and volunteerism. Our Hands will hold two public meetings for local youth to discuss challenges and to identify youth leaders who would benefit from additional training courses. Participants will produce a short film on youth political participation, and develop and implement action plans for resolving problems facing youth in the governorate. Our Hands will also provide Minya youth an opportunity to learn from the experience of and network with Cairo-based activists and NGOs.

Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED)
$45,300
To explore the feasibility of establishing a Cairo-based policy center to support Egyptian civic organizations’ and activists’ ability to advocate for policy reforms. POMED will engage in an one-year exploratory phase to identify key coalition members, local staff, the center’s legal status in Egypt, and develop one-year and three-year strategic plans.

Regional Center for Research and Consultations (RCRC)
$20,000
To identify the strengths and weaknesses in the performance of elected women parliamentarians and to strengthen the performance of female MPs. RCRC will analyze and assess the performance of past and current female parliamentarians and produce a training manual based on its findings to serve as a tool for female MPs, their staff, and NGOs that provide support to them. RCRC will launch an event to disseminate its findings and recommendations as well as test the training curriculum in a training workshop for 15 parliamentary staff and researchers.

Rural Development Association (RDA)
$25,000
To build the capacity of local councils in the Minofiya governorate and strengthen members’ effectiveness in responding to community needs, engage citizens in the decision-making process at the local level, and promote transparency and accountability of local government councils. RDA will develop a cadre of trainers from among local council members and lead a series of community forums where citizens will address community issues directly with local officials. RDA will also create a website to report on local initiatives discussed at the community forums.

Rural Studies Center (RSC)
$27,000
To raise awareness of transparency and accountability issues as well as mechanisms available for combating corruption at the local level. RSC will develop a resource guide on the role of legal mechanisms available to local councils, lead six three-day seminars on accountability and transparency for 30 local council members and 30 rural community leaders, and maintain a website in support of its anti-corruption campaign.

Rural Women Development Association (RWDA)
$20,500
To engage citizens in the decision-making process and public administration at the local level and to strengthen rural women’s engagement in local affairs. RWDA will empower its rural community to play a role in local administration; and bring together constituents and local officials to discuss and identify solutions for community problems, guide advocacy efforts to exert pressure on local officials, and strengthen local women’s leadership skills and civic knowledge through awareness seminars and a women’s parliament club.

SAWA Association for the Development of Society, Woman, Child and Environment
$19,000
To strengthen the rule of law on civic and human rights-related cases in Giza. SAWA will develop a cadre of lawyers to pursue the enforcement of existing national and international laws concerning civic and human rights. SAWA will train young lawyers in Giza and place them as volunteers within local NGOs to provide legal assistance to the organizations and their beneficiaries.

Sons of Land Center for Human Rights (SLCHR)
$30,000
To support the workers’ movement and promote the rights of temporary workers in al-Sharkiya, Daqahliyah, and Dumyat governorates. SLCHR will build workers’ capacity to demand their rights through two workshops and four seminars, while advocating for their rights through a media campaign and direct legal assistance. SLCHR will focus on workers who are hired on temporary contracts.

Youth Forum
$19,000
To expand and maintain a network of youth activists on Egyptian university campuses and to encourage the participation of university students in student union elections and civic activities on campus. Youth Forum will conduct a civic and political awareness training program for 150 university students in the Gharbeya, Suez, Minya, and Assiut governorates. The Forum will lead a total of six, repetitive two-day training workshops to build the political knowledge and leadership skills of university students in these target governorates.

Source: NED official website