CALL FOR PROPOSALS
GRANT SCHEME TO SUPPORT CSOs IN ENHANCING THE PROTECTION FROM DISCRIMINATION AGAINST VULNERABLE GROUPS IN ALBANIA
BH 5038/2025/2 Grants
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Project |
EU/COE JP “Advancing protection from discrimination in Albania” |
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Awarding entity |
Council of Europe |
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DGII, Anti-Discrimination Department |
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Funding |
European Union and Council of Europe |
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Duration |
Projects shall be implemented by 31 August 2026 with a minimum duration of 6 months and a maximum duration of 10 months Reporting requirements shall be completed by 30 September 2026. |
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Estimated starting date |
1 September 2025 |
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Issuance date |
22 July 2025 |
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Deadline for applications |
18 August 2025 |
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. INTRODUCTION 3
II. BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE PROJECT 3
III. BUDGET AVAILABLE 3
IV. REQUIREMENTS 3
1. General objective............................................................................................................................. 3
2. Means of action............................................................................................................................... 3
3. Implementation period..................................................................................................................... 3
4. Target stakeholders.......................................................................................................................... 3
5. Budgetary requirements................................................................................................................... 4
6. Further to the general objective, preference will be given to:........................................................... 4
7. The following types of action will not be considered:..................................................................... 4
8. Funding conditions:......................................................................................................................... 4
9. Reporting requirements:................................................................................................................... 4
V. HOW TO APPLY? 5
1. Documents to be submitted:............................................................................................................ 5
2. Questions......................................................................................................................................... 5
3. Deadline for submission.................................................................................................................. 5
4. Change, alteration and modification of the application file............................................................. 6
VI. EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCEDURE 6
1. Exclusion criteria:............................................................................................................................ 6
2. Eligibility criteria:............................................................................................................................ 7
3. Award criteria.................................................................................................................................. 7
VII. NOTIFICATION OF THE DECISION AND SIGNATURE OF GRANT AGREEMENTS 7
VIII. INDICATIVE TIMETABLE 7
APPENDICES:
- Appendix I - Application Form
- Appendix II - Provisional budget (Template)
- Appendix III - Template Grant Agreement (for information only)
This call for proposals is launched in the framework of the joint European Union and Council of Europe action on “Advancing the protection from discrimination in Albania”.
This call aims to support national and local projects led by civil society organisations (CSOs) to enhance their capacity to address intolerance, discrimination and hatred against vulnerable groups through inclusive measures. The initiative is divided into two thematic components:
- Component 1: Combatting Intolerance, Discrimination and Hatred towards National Minorities – Measures to foster local integration and strengthen the measures against discrimination in schools, focusing on the segregated school ‘Naim Frashëri’ in Korça.
This component focuses on the question of intolerance, discrimination and hatred based on national or ethnic grounds in the field of education. In particular, it aims to address the segregation of Roma or Egyptian pupils in schools and improve access to quality education for their communities in the Korça city area, with special regard to the ‘Naim Frashëri’ school. The proposed projects should align with the principles set out in the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of X and Others v. Albania, enhancing the efforts to carry out inclusive measures to integrate Roma/Egyptian children and non-Roma/Egyptian children in education, with a focus on joint cultural, artistic and/or sports activities involving the pupils of the ‘Naim Frashëri’ school. The project should contribute to the combat against social prejudices and promote the education of Roma and Egyptian minors, as well as the social integration of their communities in general, fostering interethnic and intercultural dialogue and understanding.
- Component 2: Combatting Intolerance, Discrimination and Hatred towards People with Disabilities – Addressing hate speech and bullying against people with disabilities.
This component is dedicated to combatting discrimination and hate speech against people with disabilities while promoting and protecting their rights. Special emphasis is placed on fostering inclusive policies, raising awareness, and implementing measures that safeguard equal opportunities for individuals with disabilities. Fostering an effective implementation of European standards in the field, the project may, for example, focus on raising awareness about the impact of hate speech and bullying targeting people with disabilities; strengthening the capacity of educators, civil society actors and public officials to counter intolerance and promote inclusive narratives; and empowering people with disabilities and their organisations to respond effectively to discriminatory incidents and participate actively in public discourse.
Through these efforts, the call seeks to reinforce the implementation of human rights standards in the field of anti-discrimination and equality, respond to hate speech and hate crime, promote social inclusion, and strengthen the role of CSOs in advocating for the rights of marginalised communities.
Project proposals shall aim to produce an added value to the Council of Europe and European Union work in combatting discrimination and hatred and diminish the stigmatisation of all targeted vulnerable groups, with a special focus on national minorities and people with disabilities, as specified above.
II. BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE PROJECT
The action aims at bringing forward the effects of the reforms in the field of anti-discrimination and combatting hate speech. It supports the alignment with European standards in the framework of the EU accession negotiation process, to better protect rights of vulnerable groups and national minorities, further strengthening diversity and equality by addressing the most recent forms of discrimination in the society and by engaging with additional partners, in line with standards and the latest recommendations of the Council of Europe monitoring bodies, notably those from the ECRI 2020 country report and from the 2023 ADFCNM opinion on Albania.
The project contains three components:
1. The first component provides legal and policy assistance to the institutions to strengthen the combat of discrimination, in compliance with the ECRI 2020 report on Albania Recommendations and on the 2018 Opinion of the Advisory Committee of the FCNM. Technical support is provided to the Government to further develop legislation to protect vulnerable groups (notably ethnic minorities, LGBTI, people with disabilities) and ensure that a corresponding strategic framework is in place. As for the Parliament, the efforts focus on enhancing its monitoring/supervisory role on equality bodies and enhancing the knowledge of equality of MPs/administrative staff.
2. The second component supports relevant institutions at central and local levels in implementing their mandate and foster their co-operation to address issues related to combatting discrimination, hate speech and hate crime. It also aims to reinforce the mandate of equality bodies and to enhance their competence on ECRI standards, notably on combatting racism and its consequences such as hate speech.
3. The third component aims at raising awareness and reaching out to the public at the local level, providing visibility to EU/CoE role on combatting discrimination and hatred and promoting rights of vulnerable groups.
Project partners include the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEFA) and Committee on National Minorities responsible for overseeing and supported in carrying out the implementation of the component relating to minority protection and promotion, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection (MoHSP) responsible for overseeing and supported in carrying out the implementation of the component relating to LGBTI and people with disabilities’ rights; the Commissioner for Protection from Discrimination (CPD) and People’s Advocate (PA), responsible for overseeing and support in carrying out the implementation of component relating to combatting hate speech at the domestic level while contributing to the regional dimension of the programme. In addition to the main partners, the action closely co-operates with the Ministry of Interior, Albanian State Police, Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth, Academia and Civil Society Organisations.
Detailed information about the Project activities is available at “Advancing the protection from discrimination in Albania”.
The indicative available budget under this call for proposals is 30,000 EUR (thirty thousand Euros). The Council of Europe and the European Union intend to award 2 grants in total of a maximum amount of 15,000 EUR (fifteen thousand Euros) each, resulting in one grant awarded under each of the two aforementioned components.
The Grantees will remain responsible for administration of the funds which have been granted.
Subject to availability of funds and extension of the Project’s initial duration, the Council of Europe/the European Union reserve the right not to award all available funds, and/or to redistribute the available funds in a different manner depending on the project proposals received and on the outcome of the call for proposals.
The grants will support national and local projects aimed at strengthening the protection and promotion of the rights of national minorities and people with disabilities in Albania. Funded activities will focus on combatting discrimination and hate speech, improving legal and policy implementation, and fostering social inclusion in line with European standards. The ultimate goal is to enhance institutional and civil society responses to discrimination while empowering vulnerable groups to actively participate in decision-making processes.
Key objectives include:
· Enhancing the capacities of CSOs and institutions to effectively prevent and respond to discrimination and hate speech against vulnerable groups, especially national minorities (Roma and Egyptians) and people with disabilities.
· Raising public awareness about the harmful impact of discrimination and hate speech on individuals and society, promoting tolerance and inclusion.
· Strengthening legal and policy frameworks by supporting research, data collection, and the implementation of measures that align with European human rights standards in the field of anti-discrimination and equality.
· In relation to component 1, promoting inclusive education for national minorities (Roma and Egyptians), with a particular focus on addressing segregation, combatting prejudice and stereotypes through culture and dialogue, and improving access to quality education, in line with the principles set out in the European Court of Human Rights’ judgment in X and Others v. Albania.
· In relation to component 2, combatting hate speech and/or countering intolerance, bullying, exclusion, discrimination, inequality, hatred and racism against people with disabilities in local communities in Albania.
· This aligns with ECRI’s General Policy Recommendation No. 15, which calls for a comprehensive approach to combat hate speech through prevention, support to victims, self-regulation and regulation, awareness-raising, and the promotion of counter-speech. Emphasis is placed on ensuring that public discourse does not stigmatise vulnerable groups, particularly persons with disabilities, and that local authorities and community actors play an active role in preventing and addressing such harmful narratives.
· Creating and promoting counter and alternative narratives to hatred and intolerance and enhancing dialogue among different groups in the society.
· Empowering people with disabilities by advocating for their rights, combatting stereotypes, and ensuring their full participation in social and public life.
· Supporting local initiative groups, coalitions, and platforms to strengthen the engagement of vulnerable communities in decision-making at the local level.
2. Means of action
Projects may include activities such as the following (this list of example activities is illustrative and not meant to be exhaustive):
• Component 1: Combatting Intolerance, Discrimination and Hatred towards National Minorities – Measures to foster local integration and fight discrimination in schools, focusing on the segregated school ‘Naim Frashëri’ in Korça .
- Community outreach and awareness campaigns in the Korça city area on rights of Roma and Egyptian minorities in Albania, including for example theatres or other artistic performances, musicals, public discussions, storytelling/living library initiatives, and media campaigns to promote inclusion and address school segregation in Albania.
- Training programmes for school educators, mediators and administrators on inclusive education practices, bias awareness, addressing and preventing segregation in the classroom, and promoting multicultural learning environments including by creating inclusive school materials and curricula.
- Innovative proposals to improve the diversity of pupils – in particular, to enhance the school’s attractiveness to non-Roma/Egyptian families – in the ‘Naim Frashëri’ school and promote activities such as after school programmes or others that strive to encourage the participation of pupils from all over the Korça city area. For example, joint extracurricular clubs (arts, theatre, music, storytelling, crafts) involving both Roma/Egyptian and non-Roma/Egyptian pupils from ‘Naim Frashëri’, promoting shared experiences and intercultural dialogue; or inclusive sports tournaments with mixed teams, with parental and teacher involvement; or intercultural school festivals co-organised by students and parents of diverse backgrounds.
- Cultural exchange programs promoting diversity and inclusion among youth from different ethnic backgrounds and abilities.
- Developing educational materials and toolkits for schools, CSOs, and local authorities on combatting discrimination and fostering inclusion.
• Component 2: Combatting Intolerance, Discrimination and Hatred towards People with Disabilities – Addressing hate speech and bullying against persons people with disabilities.
- Awareness-raising initiatives on the impact of hate speech against people with disabilities, using social media, storytelling, and real-life testimonials.
- Cultural exchange programs promoting diversity and inclusion among youth from backgrounds and abilities.
- Legal support services for individuals facing discrimination, including assistance in filing complaints and navigating legal protections.
- Data collection, research, monitoring of implementation of national strategies and legislation.
- Employment support programs for people with disabilities, including vocational training, job fairs, and employer engagement initiatives.
- Strengthening local disability rights networks to enhance advocacy efforts and participation in policymaking.
- Anti-discrimination training for public institutions, employers, and media on disability rights, inclusive policies, and combatting stereotypes.
· Awareness-raising activities targeting people with disabilities and civil society organizations including actions promoting rights of people with disability such as information campaigns, develop education materials for people with disabilities and make it accessible to them; disability sensitisation and awareness among key stakeholders; support platforms or open spaces for people with disabilities; inclusion of people with disabilities in humanitarian actions;
The Grant requires the cooperation of the applicant with local and national authorities as mentioned above (letters of support will be an asset to the application).
The implementation period of the projects should start on 1 September 2025 (see indicative timetable under VIII. below) and shall not extend beyond 31 August 2026.
In order to ensure a form of supervision halfway through the implementation period, the grantee will be requested to report by email on the list of activities implemented against those listed in the initial plan, and on the overall rate of financial expenditure against the total amount of the grant.
Following the email submission to the Council of Europe, a meeting will be called to discuss the pace of implementation and define corrective measures and adjustments whereby needed. A further meeting may be convened. The exchange will be closed with a feedback from the side of the Council of Europe that contains such recommendations and confirm the pace of implementation.
Final narrative and financial reports must be submitted on 30 September 2026 at the latest.
Projects completed prior to the date of submission of the applications will be automatically excluded. As regard projects started prior to the date of submission of the applications, or prior to the date of signature of the grant agreement, only those costs incurred after the date of submission of the grant application could be eligible (provided the agreement concerned so provides).
Projects should target in particular the following key stakeholders: organisations of national minorities, Roma and Egyptian pupils and people with disabilities and/or hate speech, local population especially youth and citizens/people belonging to Roma and Egyptian minorities, school teaching/support staff and people with disabilities.
The above list is not exhaustive and projects may propose to target other relevant stakeholders, while keeping in mind the general objective of the Project.
Project proposals shall be accompanied by a draft budget (See Template Budget, in Appendix II) amounting to a maximum of 15,000.00 EUR (fifteen thousand Euros). The estimated budget must be consistent, accurate, clear, complete and cost-effective, in the light of the activities proposed.
Each Grantee shall also be required to contribute to the project either by way of its own resources or by contribution from third parties, with an amount equal to at least 5% of the amount of the grant. Co-financing may take the form of financial or human resources, in-kind contributions or income generated by the action or project.
- Organisations based in or already having substantial project/cooperation activities in Korça for component 1 and in localities other than Tirana, for component 2;
- Projects that directly address discrimination and segregation in schools by promoting inclusive education and equal opportunities for Roma and Egyptian pupils in the Korça city area, particularly the ‘Naim Frashëri’ school(for Component 1 only);
- Projects strengthening the participation of representatives of groups vulnerable to discrimination in the decision-making process at the local level;
- Projects/actions that demonstrate a clear alignment with EU and Council of Europe standards on anti-discrimination, human rights, and inclusion in Albania;
· Projects that include a clear and impactful list of visibility activities that should be implemented through the grant, aimed at disseminating project results and promoting its key messages among the general public, with a particular emphasis on values such as tolerance, inclusion, and non-discrimination. This may include the production of short videos and engaging social media content;
- Projects that introduce innovative and sustainable approaches that create long-term social change and improve institutional and community responses to discrimination.
Projects are encouraged to have a gender mainstreaming and an intersectional dimension.
● Projects/actions providing financial support to third parties (re-granting schemes);
● Projects/actions concerning only or mainly individual scholarships for studies or training courses;
● Projects/actions supporting political parties.
The funds for each grant should in principle be distributed as follows:
● 80% will be paid to the Grantee or the Lead Grantee in case of a consortium when the Grant Agreement between the Parties is signed.
● the balance will be paid to the Grantee or the Lead Grantee in case of a consortium based on actual expenditures incurred, and after the presentation and acceptance by the Council of Europe of the final narrative and financial reports for the Grant implementation.
● narrative reporting requires a full narrative report on the use made of the grant and a copy of the register of the persons present during each of the activities, including names and signatures of participants;
● financial reporting requires in particular a statement in the currency in which the Grant Agreement will be concluded (Euros or local currency), in English, stating the payments made for the implementation of the activities, certified by the responsible financial officer of the Grantees, accompanied by “appropriate original supporting documents” (see below). The Council of Europe reserves the right to ask for summary translations of invoices into English. If for legal reasons the original documents must be retained by the Grantees, certified copies must be submitted with the financial statement.
“Appropriate original supporting documents” refers to signed contracts, invoices and acceptances of work (for all transactions), payment authorisation for all transactions should also be provided in case the Grantees use such practice, and reliable evidence of payment (authorised payment order and bank statement).
As regards round tables / conferences, presenting “appropriate original supporting documents” requires presentation of a programme indicating the title, dates, venue, and agenda of the event; the names of persons facilitating the event, a signed list of participants, the contracts with the owner of venue of the event (e.g. hotel) for the rent of premises, food and beverages of participants, invoices from the owner of the venue of the event for the above services, and a report on the results of the event (see narrative reporting above).
As regards consultancy services, presenting “appropriate original supporting documents” requires presentation of evidence of the outputs produced, contracts with experts and consultants containing a specific description of services to be carried out, invoices produced after the works have been performed and delivered (the specialities of the consultants shall correspond to the nature of activities for which they are contracted).
As regards travel fees / lodging of experts and participants, presenting “appropriate original supporting documents” requires presentation, where relevant, of contracts with a travel agency for travel fees and lodging, invoices of the travel agency indicating destinations, dates, ticket costs, and names of the travelling people, a programme of the event indicating the names of the experts and signed lists of participants.
The above description is not comprehensive. Any doubt regarding the interpretation of the notion of “appropriate original supporting documents” should lead the Grantee or the Lead Grantee in case of a consortium to consult the Council of Europe.
Each application shall contain:
● the completed and signed Application Form (See Appendix I), clearly indicating the component for which the applicant is applying for
● a provisional budget (using the template reproduced in Appendix II);
● the other supporting documents:
- Statute of the organisation, or the equivalent;
- Certificate(s) of registration as a non-profit organisation;
- Plan of work for the proposed project (list of activities);
- CV(s) of the project manager(s);
- A list of the projects completed within the last three years;
- The financial document detailing the annual turnover for 2024;
- Letter of support on cooperation with authorities and/or local schools (it is not mandatory, but it would be considered as an asset);
- Letter of commitment or Memorandum from partner CSOs (only in case of applications as consortium).
Applications that are incomplete will not be considered.
All documents shall be submitted in English (with exception of organisation’s registration certificate and statute), failure to do so will result in the exclusion of the Grantee.
General information can be found on the website of the Council of Europe: “Advancing the protection from discrimination in Albania”.
Other questions regarding this specific call for proposals must be sent at the latest one week before the deadline for the submission of proposals, in English or Albanian, and shall be exclusively sent to the following address: [email protected], with the following reference in subject: QUESTIONS-GRANTS-ANTI-DISCRIMINATION -ALBANIA.
The application form, completed and signed by all Grantees, together with the supporting documents, must be submitted in electronic form (Word and/or PDF) to the following e-mail address: [email protected]. Emails should contain the following reference in subject: GRANTS-ANTI-DISCRIMINATION -ALBANIA.
Applications must be received before 18 August 2025 (at 23:59 Tirana local time). Applications received after the above-mentioned date will not be considered.
Any change in the format, or any alteration or modification of the original application file, will cause the immediate rejection of the application concerned.
VI. EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCEDURE
The projects presented will be assessed by an Evaluation Committee composed of three staff members of the Council of Europe.
The procedure shall be based on the underlying principles of grant award procedures, which are transparency, non-retroactivity, non-cumulative awards, not-for-profit, co-financing and non-discrimination, in accordance with Rule 1374 of 16 December 2015 on the grant award procedures of the Council of Europe.
The applicants, and their projects, shall fulfil all of the following criteria:
Applicants shall be excluded from the grant award procedure where they or, in the case of legal persons, their owner(s) or executive officer(s):
a) have been sentenced by final judgment on one or more of the following charges: participation in a criminal organisation, corruption, fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing, terrorist offences or offences linked to terrorist activities, child labour or trafficking in human beings;
b) are in a situation of bankruptcy, liquidation, termination of activity, insolvency or arrangement with creditors or any like situation arising from a procedure of the same kind, or are subject to a procedure of the same kind;
c) have received a judgement with res judicata force, finding an offence that affects their professional integrity or constitutes a serious professional misconduct;
d) do not comply with their obligations as regards payment of social security contributions, taxes and dues, according to the statutory provisions of the country where they are established;
e) are an entity created to circumvent tax, social or other legal obligations (empty shell company), have ever created or are in the process of creation of such an entity;
f) have been involved in mismanagement of the Council of Europe funds or public funds;
g) are included in the lists of persons or entities subject to restrictive measures applied by the European Union (available at www.sanctionsmap.eu).
By signing the Application Form, applicants shall declare on their honour that they are not in any of the above-mentioned situations (See Appendix I, Item 12).
The Council of Europe reserves the right to ask applicants at a later stage to supply the following supporting documents:
- for the items set out in paragraphs a), b), c) and f), an extract from the record of convictions or failing that an equivalent document issued by the competent judicial or administrative authority of the country where the applicant is established, indicating that these requirements are met;
- for the items set out in paragraph d), a certificate issued by the competent authority of the country of establishment;
- for the items set out in paragraph e);
1. for natural persons, a scanned copy of a valid photographic proof of identity (e.g. passport)
2. for legal persons, an extract from the companies register or other official document proving ownership and control of the applicant.
In order to be eligible for a grant, an applicant must:
· be legally constituted as a non-governmental organisation in Albania;
· be entitled to carry out in Albania activities described in its project proposal;
· have been active for at least 3 (three) years in the field of protection of vulnerable groups, combatting discrimination and/or hate speech, and/or human rights/anti-discrimination;
· have sufficient financial capacity (stable and sufficient sources of funding) to maintain its activity throughout the period for which the grant is awarded and to participate by way of its own resources (including human resources or in-kind contributions)[1];
· have sufficient operational and professional capacity, including staff, to carry out activities described in its project proposal;[2]
· have a bank account.
Multiple applications are not allowed and shall lead to the exclusion of all applications concerned
One applicant can apply for only one of the components and therefore can submit only one project proposal in total.
Applications will be assessed against the following criteria:
● the relevance and added value of the project and its activities with regard to the implementation of the Council of Europe recommendations and standards as well as the objectives listed under sub-sections ‘1. General objective’, ‘2. Means of action’ and ‘6. Further to the general objective, preference will be given to’, which are to be found under ‘Section IV Requirements’ of the present Call) (60%)
● the quality, accuracy, clarity, completeness and cost-effectiveness of the application, including its visibility component, and the estimated budget (20%);
● organisations based in or already having substantial project/cooperation activities in Korça for component 1 and in localities other than Tirana, for component 2 (20%).
VII. NOTIFICATION OF THE DECISION AND SIGNATURE OF GRANT AGREEMENTS
On completion of the selection process, all applicants will be notified in writing of the final decision concerning their respective applications as well as on the next steps to be undertaken.
The selected Grantees will be invited to sign a Grant Agreement (See Appendix III, for information only), formalising their legal commitments. Potential applicants are strongly advised to read the draft contract, in particular its requirements in terms of payment and reporting.
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Phases |
Indicative timing |
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Publication of the call |
22 July 2025 |
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Deadline for submitting applications |
18 August 2025, 23:59 Tirana local time |
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Information to applicants on the results of the award procedure |
29 August 2025 |
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Signature of the grant agreements |
1 September 2025 |
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Implementation period |
1 September 2025 - 31 August 2026 (6-10 months) |
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[1] The Council of Europe shall have full discretion in determining whether applicants are considered to have sufficient financial capacity in light of the complexity of the project/action proposed.
[2] The Council of Europe shall have full discretion in determining whether applicants are considered to have sufficient operational and professional capacity in light of the complexity of the project/action proposed.