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Call for Proposals from U.S. NGOs
Program to Support Crisis Centers for Women in the Russian
Federation
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is
seeking applications from qualified U.S. nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs) to implement the Program to Support Crisis
Centers for Women in the Russian Federation. The purpose of the
program is to strengthen and provide support to the Russian
institutions that provide crisis counseling and legal services to
victims of domestic violence, that raise awareness of domestic
violence issues among specialists and the general public, and
that promote alternatives to violence. This is a critical issue
which needs an urgent response.
The Program to Support Crisis Centers for Women is designed as a
two-year activity, with a possible one-year extension. USAID
could program up to $400,000 for the two-year life of this
activity, subject to the availability of funds.
Other Donors Support for Programs that Address Domestic Violence
Issues
A number of foreign donors sponsor programs in Russia in the area
of domestic violence awareness and prevention. These efforts
range from a public-awareness and fundraising campaign recently
conducted by the International Women's Club to the extensive
programs funded by the Ford Foundation. Ford Foundation
activities include public-education campaigns, providing training
to crisis center staff, lawyers, doctors, and social workers on
psychological and legal counseling, developing an Association of
Crisis Centers, and an outreach, training, and small grants
program to help establish new crisis centers in Siberia and
Russian Far East. The British Know How Fund supports a variety
of training programs for attorneys, including a training-of-
trainers seminar for lawyers and counselors working with various
target groups, and support production and distribution of
brochures, pamphlets and other publications for women. The Open
Society Institute (OSI) conducts a small grants program for
crisis centers to promote exchanges between Central and East
European (CEE) countries and Russia that also provides training
for CEE women at two Russian crisis centers. A separate OSI
small grants program that targets women's issues provides limited
funding for projects which address violence against women.
U.S. Government Programs Addressing Domestic Violence Issues
The Department of State has funded several programs conducted by
NGOs such as Project Harmony, US-Russia/Connect and Sister Cities
International. These programs raise awareness of domestic
violence issues, at the core targeting law enforcement officials.
They bring together social workers, crisis center activists,
lawmakers, health workers and law enforcement professionals. The
programs are being carried out in different localities in Russia
and the U.S. to increase interaction in a multi-disciplinary
approach to the problem of domestic violence.
USAID/Russia supported the establishment of a network of lawyers
and crisis center counselors who respond to women's legal needs
related to domestic violence and sexual assault; raise women's
and the general public's awareness about legal rights and
responsibilities in the area of domestic violence; and pressure
government institutions to be more responsive to sexual assault
and domestic violence cases. Also, the American Bar
Association/Central and East European Law Initiative (ABA/CEELI)
conducts training for women's rights advocates and women
attorneys on legal issues. Topics include legal remedies and use
of expert witnesses in domestic violence cases. ABA/CEELI
promotes continuing education and networking for lawyers, NGO
activists, social workers and psychologists through monthly
meetings on violence issues and advocacy. ABA/CEELI also trains
Russian judges on domestic violence-related issues. Also,
support for four Women's Wellness Centers through the American
International Health Alliance (AIHA) Hospital Partnerships
Program includes comprehensive primary care, education and
counseling services for women, including counseling related to
domestic violence.
Background: Crisis Centers Addressing Issues of Domestic
Violence in Russia
There are presently 32 crisis centers in Russia, with 57%
officially registered as NGOs. A survey of crisis centers found
that the average annual budget of a crisis center is under
$40,000. The crisis centers are in the process of forming and
registering an Association of Crisis Centers to facilitate
communication among network members and serve as a coordinating
body in gathering statistics on domestic violence rates
throughout Russia. The Association hopes to become a viable
network that can provide training, disseminate information, and
publicize successful regional models. The Ford Foundation will
sponsor a conference and other activities in 1999 to initiate the
registration of the Association as a Anon-commercial
partnership.@
Other longer-term needs and goals to address domestic violence
include:
- Expanding the number of crisis centers
- Expanding access to crisis center services to rural locations
- Increasing center's advocacy skills related to monitoring
legislation and promoting legal reform of both criminal and
civil provisions
- Establishing a legal network for lawyers involved with crisis
centers
- Creating pilot women's shelters
- Participating in overseas training in multi disciplinary
approaches to preventing domestic violence
- Expanding US-Russia partnerships
Program Objectives
The goal of this program is to strengthen and provide support to
Russian institutions that provide crisis counseling and legal
services to victims of domestic violence, that raise awareness of
domestic violence issues among specialists and the general
public, and that promote alternatives to violence. Given USAID's
limited resources to address domestic violence, USAID/Russia
proposes that this assistance program directly support existing
crisis centers through small grants for immediate needs and to
provide funding to the Russian Association of Crisis Centers to
develop their training, network development, data collection,
outreach, advocacy and other programs as needed.
a. Support to Crisis Centers for Women
Russia's crisis centers for women have many immediate needs that
could be met through a flexible small grants program. These
needs include:
- funds to purchase (or print and publish) materials
- funds to rent small office space
- funds to operate a hotline
- funds to purchase computers and other equipment
- funds to pay for electronic mail, telephone, and fax
connections
- funds to provide stipends to lawyers to provide consultations
and court representation
- training on psychological and legal counseling for staff and
volunteers
- training on organizational development, financial management,
fundraising, grant proposal writing, and social marketing for
staff and volunteers
- leadership training
- improving collaboration with local government authorities, law
enforcement and legislative bodies, and health care providers
The Application should describe the applicant's proposed approach
for a competitive small grants program to directly support the
most immediate needs of crisis centers taking into account issues
of sustainability and capacity of the resource centers to use
outside funding. The applicant should recommend proposed size of
small grants and method of competition and award of small grants.
An important aspect will be the applicant's capacity to move
quickly to get needed resources to the centers.
b. Support to the Association of Russian Crisis Centers
The applicant should propose an approach to working with and
supporting the association taking into account the nascent nature
of the association and planned other donor assistance for the
association.
Deadline: Applications must be received by 3:00 p.m. March 5,
1999, at the USAID office in Moscow.
Applications are available online at:
http://www.info.usaid.gov/ftp_data/pub/OP/RFA/11899004/
For more information contact:
Orion Yeandel
U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
NOVINSKY BOULEVARD 19/23
MOSCOW 121099 RUSSIA
Tel: +7 (095) 956-4281
Fax: +7 (095) 960-2140
E-mail: [email protected]
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Last updated: February 17, 1999