The European Commission believes that an empowered civil society is a crucial component of any democratic system and is an asset in itself. It represents and fosters pluralism and can contribute to more effective policies, equitable and sustainable development and inclusive growth. It is an important player in fostering peace and in conflict resolution. By articulating citizens' concerns, civil society organisations (CSOs) are active in the public arena, engaging in initiatives to further participatory democracy and governance.
To support Cypriot CSOs, Civic Space provides them with the necessary knowledge and skills on different capacity building topics (organisational management, project development and management, communication, fundraising, advocacy, etc.) in order to become more effective, sustainable and enhance their capacities to better articulate citizens’ concerns, foster democracy, human rights and peace.
Civic Space organised, in 2016, a study related to the perceptions of Civil Society Organisations towards civil society capacities, later followed by a capacity needs assessment and a training needs survey (in 2019).
On the basis of these studies, Civic Space has so far carried out trainings on: transparency and accountability; advocacy; working with volunteers; project design; digital content production and security; fundraising; communication strategy & digital tools; rights-based monitoring, reporting and advocacy; mediation and problem solving; logical framework for monitoring & evaluation; facilitation & mentoring skills on civil society capacity building topics.
Organised in Nicosia, Famagusta, Lefka/Lefke and Morphou/Güzelyurt, the trainings were deemed very positive with 93% of participants rating them as beneficial for their CSOs and their work.
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