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NGO Monitor

NGO Monitor provides information and analysis, promotes accountability, and supports discussion on the reports and activities of NGOs (non-governmental organizations) claiming to advance human rights and humanitarian agendas.

Lobbying Activity

Meeting with Cristian Terheş (Member of the European Parliament)

20 Nov 2025 · Gaps in Oversight of NGO Grants

Meeting with Lukas Mandl (Member of the European Parliament)

19 Nov 2025 · Activities of NGO Monitor in the Middle East

Meeting with Christine O'Dwyer (Cabinet of High Representative/ Vice-President Kaja Kallas) and The Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School Education

26 Mar 2025 · Courtesy meeting

Meeting with Niclas Herbst (Member of the European Parliament)

3 Apr 2024 · Hate speech in Textbooks in Palestine

Response to Evaluation of the EU's external action support in the area of gender equality and women empowerment

23 Sept 2019

As territory under the EU’s European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), the West Bank and Gaza receive significant EU funding for a variety of policy sectors, including those related to gender. According to the EU’s financial transparency system (FTS), in 2018, approximately €9.6 million was provided to CSOs and other institutions in the West Bank and Gaza for projects dealing explicitly with gender-related issues. However, closer examination of projects and local implementing partners reveals significant shortcomings regarding transparency, accountability, and reporting practices on the part of both EU funding mechanisms and CSOs. These shortcomings limit the ability to independently assess these taxpayer-funded initiatives and their effectiveness when results are not made publicly available. For example : - DG NEAR provided €3.2 million for a project titled “Combating Violence Against Women in the Southern Mediterranean Region.” Seven different CSOs in seven countries were listed on the grant including the Palestinian CSO Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development (PWWSD). - DG DEVCO provided approximately €1.6 million to Bir Zeit University and three other CSOs for a project titled “Naseej: Connecting Voices and Action to End Violence Against Women and Girls in the MENA Region.” - EIDHR provided €656,000 for a project titled “Supporting Women Journalists and Human Rights Defenders in Yemen, Iraq, Sudan, West Bank and Gaza Strip.” Five different CSOs in five countries were listed on the grant, including the Palestinian CSO “Teacher Creativity Center Association.” In all three cases, relevant DGs did not publish summaries detailing how the funds were used and what, if any, results were achieved. Transparency is critical to effective and independent assessment of the use of taxpayer funds, and we call on the EU to publish this information pertaining to GAP III projects and grantees. The success of GAP III is contingent on the selection of appropriate local partners to implement EU programs. In the past, the EU, European and other international donors such as the UN have funded Palestinian women’s NGOs that claim to promote gender advancement, yet instead have promoted terrorism and violence. A prime example is the Women’s Affairs Technical Committee (WATC). WATC claims to “seek to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women" and to "empower women to assume decision-making positions.” However, in 2017, WATC named a youth center after Dalal Mughrabi, a terrorist who in 1978 murdered 37 civilians, including 12 children. In response, Norway and the UN condemned the “glorification of terrorist attacks” and demanded the funding be repaid. In sharp contrast, the Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO), an umbrella organization representing Palestinian civil society organizations, swiftly condemned Norway, referring to Mughrabi as a “Palestinian Woman Freedom Fighter.” Additionally, in 2017, during GAP I, EIDHR granted €699,236 for a project titled “Strengthening Community Resilience and Social Cohesion in East Jerusalem on Both Sides of the Separation Wall.” One of the implementing partners was the Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees (UPWC). UPWC has been identified by USAID as the “women’s organization ” of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a designated terrorist organization by the EU. NGO Monitor research and analysis reveals that many such organizations, unfortunately, utilize their platform on women’s issues to promote politicized narratives that are rejectionist and violent, often to the detriment of gender equality within Palestinian society. This trend can be largely attributed to a subordination of gender equality and/or female empowerment to Palestinian political agendas. The EU needs to be cognizant of this phenomenon and GAP III funding partners need to be carefully scrutinized to make sure their activities are in line with EU values and GAP III objectives.
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