Hivos provides financial and political support for specific activities (project funding), for programmes, or for organisational operations in more than thirty countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and South-Eastern Europe. Hivos has identified the following programme priorities for support.

Economy:

• producer organisations (primary and secondary sector) that meet social and environmental criteria: organisations of farmers, processors of agricultural products, and business persons in the crafts and handiwork sector;
• financial institutions (tertiary sector): local credit institutions such as savings and credit cooperatives, non-commercial/non-profit banking and credit institutions, special funds and commercial banks; and
• organisations specialised in training, advice and lobbying such as trade unions, networks of credit institutions and producer organisations, vocational training schools, consultancy firms, training institutes and approval or standard organisations.

Environment & Sustainable Development:

• organisations that develop alternatives and put them into practice: sustainable production methods, sustainable consumption patterns and behaviour;
• organisations that aim to countervail unsustainable developments threatening people's livelihoods, i.e. deforestation, mining, pollution, industrial agriculture;
• organisations that adopt an integrated approach; and
• organisations that broaden the basis for the sustainable management of natural resources by forming strategic alliances.

Human Rights:

• organisations that promote basic political rights;
• organisations that promote the rights of specific groups; and
• organisations that address key factors underlying human rights violations;

HIV/AIDS:

• prevention, awareness, information;
• lobby, advocacy, influencing policy;
• organisation building, network development, communication; and
• emancipation and sexuality.

Gender, Women and Development:

• women's organisations that promote the rights and interests of women; and
• mixed organisations that promote gender equality in their programme activities and within their own organisation. Support is aimed at creating conditions within the organisation for a genuine process of change, also in the longer term.

Arts & Culture

• artistic production;
• cultural and artistic exchange;
• promotion, marketing and distribution;
• cultural infrastructure;
• membership organisations of artists;
• economic or educational services for the arts & culture sector;
• organisations that provide a podium for artists;
• capacity building initiatives; and
• research and critique of the arts.

Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

• gaining access to the internet;
• producing and publishing Southern "content" on the world wide web;
• developing and enhancing own ICT capacities;
• using networking and collaborative technologies;
• applying e-commerce and e-business models; and
• campaigning for free and unrestricted "cyber rights for all."

Click here for more information.

Applicants can apply online using the HIVOS virtual office. An initial online self-assessment will help organisations determine if they are in principle eligible for Hivos support.

Click here to visit the online application.