Prospera International Network of Women's Funds
Prospera WFE
Our goal is to generate the means for women’s funds to support women, girls, and trans* people to determine how they want to succeed while creating the conditions in which they are able to thrive.
ID: 908150137027-18
Lobbying Activity
Meeting with Evin Incir (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur) and Women Against Violence Europe Network
25 Jan 2023 · Violence against women and domestic violence
Meeting with Frances Fitzgerald (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur) and EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION and
27 Oct 2022 · Proposal for a Directive on combatting violence against women and domestic violence
Meeting with Diana Riba I Giner (Member of the European Parliament) and Women Against Violence Europe Network
21 Jun 2022 · Gender-based Violence Directive
Meeting with Monika Ladmanova (Cabinet of Vice-President Věra Jourová)
26 Apr 2021 · Gender equality
Meeting with Renaud Savignat (Cabinet of Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen)
12 Feb 2021 · Prospera WFE presented the recent activities and engagement on GAP III
Response to EU Action Plan of Gender equality and women’s empowerment in external relations for 2021-2025
3 Apr 2020
Prospera Network of Women’s Funds Europe (WFE) response to the EU Action Plan of Gender equality and women’s empowerment in external relations for 2021-2025
WFE is a coalition of 14 women's funds in 11 countries in Europe working to achieve gender equality and human rights regionally and globally. Each year, WFE mobilises an average of €17 million to advance the rights of women, girls and trans people and provide over 700 grants to women's orgs. across 76 countries. WFE is part of Prospera, an international network of women's funds with 38 members in 33 countries, working at the national, regional and international level therefore the geographical reach of our members is significant. Translating the objectives of the Action Plan on the ground requires an implementing plan and call to action. Grassroots women’s orgs., widely regarded as being among the most qualified to work on gender equality provide this missing link.
Implementation:
1. Dedicated tools for strengthening cooperation with grassroots women’s CSOs, that would provide them with a more prominent role in promoting/implementing the EU Action Plan. Funds for CSOs promoting EU actions on the ground within the EU are currently very limited, particularly for CSOs operating at local and national level.
Recommendation: Provision of ringfenced funding specifically supporting grassroots CSOs active at local/national level to build administrative and financial capacity to support GAP III delivery on the ground e.g. supporting regional resource centres, training & mentoring of CSO representatives in specific activities including participative and evidence-based policy making, monitoring & evaluation, fundraising, communication/awareness-raising and campaigning.
2. Providing a voice for grassroots women’s orgs. in Europe and globally - The broad structured CS dialogue at an EU level is often perceived as not representative of CS practitioners, following a predetermined or donor agenda. There is a clear need to improve the transfer of knowledge where national and grassroots women’s funds have a far greater role in contributing to the design & implementation of European external policies, programmes and projects.
Recommendation: Development of a permanent consultative forum for grassroots women’s orgs. which could support and advise the Commission around improved implementation of women’s rights & gender equality to strengthen community CSO engagement in the EU Action Plan of equality and women’s empowerment in external relations for 2021-2025.
3. Shared delivery of GAP III to build a partnership-based approach with women’s CSOs - In general, while monitoring frameworks and baselines have been established within a number of European Programme frameworks, these are excessively focused on quantitative data and analysis. Missing is a qualitative impact assessment in terms of evaluating the choice of objectives, the results of activities, potential risks and benefits, and long-term effects.
Recommendation: Consider identifying common European, national and grassroots CSO objectives as part of the implementing plan of GAP III in order to fully reflect women’s rights impact on spending targets and the importance of specifying target groups of beneficiaries, and participants of their actions, on the basis of gender.
Conclusion: These recommendations would strengthen the capacities of the Commission with key tools, technical assistance, research and analysis in order to support and inform the EU Action Plan through harnessing the knowledge of the wider women’s funds and CS movement. The creation of a dedicated consultative forum of grassroots women’s orgs. would not only promote awareness among key audiences of the valuable and unique role that women’s funds play in communities around the world but also promote innovative solutions to identify greater resources for women’s and girl’s rights through women’s funds that would ensure that the EU Action Plan has real long term impact.
Read full responseResponse to Gender equality in the EU
13 Feb 2020
Prospera Network of Women’s Funds Europe welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2024. We feel there is a real opportunity for grassroots women’s CSOs to play a major role and take ownership of delivering specific aspects of the G.E.Strategy. Translating the objectives of the G.E.Strategy on the ground requires an implementing plan and call to action. Grassroots women’s organisations, widely regarded as being among the most qualified to work on gender equality provide this missing link. Our key messages are summarised as follows:
• Strengthening funding instruments for grassroots women’s CSOs: Provision of dedicated technical assistance funding which specifically supports grassroots CSOs active at local and national level to build administrative and financial capacity to support the delivery of the G.E.Strategy on the ground.
• Empowering grassroots women’s organisations in Europe: Creation of a permanent consultative forum for grassroots women’s organisations to strengthen community CSO engagement in the G.E. Strategy 2020-2024.
• Shared delivery: Identify common policy objectives for grassroots women’s CSOs to deliver and implement specific aspects of the G.E.Strategy via a shared management approach with European and national CSOs.
Implementing the G.E.Strategy on the ground
Delivery of key aspects of the G.E.Strategy could be achieved through the following enabling actions:
1. Dedicated tools for strengthening cooperation with grassroots women’s CSOs that would provide them with a more prominent role in promoting and implementing the G.E.Strategy and women’s and girls’ rights and empowerment at an EU level. Funds for CSOs promoting EU actions on the ground within the EU are currently very limited, particularly for CSOs operating at local and national level.
Recommendation: Provision of ringfenced funding which specifically supports grassroots CSOs active at local and national level to build administrative and financial capacity to support the delivery of the G.E.Strategy on the ground.This could take the form of supporting regional resource centres, training and mentoring of CSO representatives in specific activities including participative and evidence-based policymaking, monitoring and evaluation, fundraising, communication/awareness-raising and campaigning.
2. Providing a voice for grassroots women’s organisations in Europe - The broad structured civil society dialogue at an EU level is often perceived as not representative of civil society practitioners, following a predetermined or donor agenda. There is a clear need to improve the transfer of knowledge where national and grassroots women’s funds have a far greater role in contributing to the design and implementation of European policies, programmes and projects.
Recommendation: Development of a permanent consultative forum for grassroots women’s organisations which could support and advise the Commission around the improved implementation of women’s rights and gender equality to strengthen community CSO engagement in the Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2024.
3. Shared delivery of the G.E.Strategy to build a partnership-based approach with women’s CSOs - in general, while monitoring frameworks and baselines have been established within a number of European Programme frameworks, these are excessively focused on quantitative data and analysis. What is missing is a qualitative impact assessment in terms of evaluating the choice of objectives, the results of activities, potential risks and benefits, and long-term effects.
Recommendation: Consider identifying common European, national and grassroots CSO objectives as part of the implementing plan of the Gender equality strategy in order to fully reflect women’s rights impact on spending targets and the importance of specifying target groups of beneficiaries, and participants of their actions, on the basis of gender.
Read full response