AFRICAN CIVIL SOCIETY Fund

The African Civil Society Fund (African Fund) is a grant making and capacity building initiative, whose mission is to strengthen and promote the values of an open society; a democratic political culture; an active civil society; universal human rights principles and standards; and the rule of law in African societies. The Fund works through resource mobilisation, grant making and the provision of technical assistance to support grass roots, national and sub-regional human rights and civil society organisations across Africa in pursuit of sustainable democracy and an advanced human rights culture on the African continent. 

The Fund’s fundamental objective is “to enable its grantees and programme beneficiaries to identify, design, implement, monitor and evaluate efficient and effective projects and activities for the protection and promotion of civil and political, and economic, social and cultural rights at community and national levels.” To realise this objective, the Fund seeks to support proactive and relevant strategies and innovative approaches to tackle the challenges of human security, social justice and democratization processes in local communities and at national levels through the provision of an enabling and vibrant environment to foster civil society and human rights organisations as alternative and independent actors. In pursuit of this, the African Fund supports efforts and actions which uphold to Africa regional and internationally recognised human rights principles and liberal values of democracy.

Furthermore, this fundamental objective is being achieved through resources mobilization within and outside Africa; managing and disbursing grants to community and national human rights and civic actors; stimulating researches and building capacity of grantees and other target beneficiaries; and raising public awareness, advocating and influencing policies and practices concerning human rights in general and the democratization processes in African societies. The African Fund, among most of its progress made, has gained a high profile of endorsement, and has already gained national, regional and international attention.

Our Vision Statement

The Vision of African Fund is “to develop into a ‘stipulated’ pan-African fund prominent for the advancement of universal human rights principles and standards and the promotion of the values of an open society and democratic political culture in African societies”.

Our Mission Statement

The Mission of African Fund is “to serve a pan-African fundraising and grant making initiative enabling grassroots and national non-governmental and civil society organizations (CBOs, NGOs and CSOs) in communities across Africa through grants and capacity building to address human rights violations and impunity and therefore, to promote human rights culture and sustainable democracy in African societies.”