Noorwegen betaalt NGO's in de Europese Unie om groeiend racisme in armere lidstaten af te remmen (en)
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Norway is boosting its funding scheme for civil society projects in the EU's poorer states in the east and south in order to stem a rise of racism aggravated by unemployment and the economic crisis.
"We will focus on civil society and one reason why we do it is because we see racism on the increase," Ingrid Schulerud, a Norwegian diplomat, told EUobserver.
Ms Schulerud was in charge of negotiations with the EU on the renewal of a funding scheme worth €1.79 billion that is available from 2009 to 2014 to the EU's newest member states in central and eastern Europe, as well as Greece, Portugal and Spain.
As a non-EU member, oil- and gas-rich Norway agreed to this trade-off for the less developed countries in Europe some 15 years ago, when it joined the bloc's internal market. Iceland and Liechtenstein are also donors to the so-called EEA Grants, with Oslo providing 97 percent of the total funding.
At least 10 percent of the funding will now be specifically earmarked for non-govermental organisations, with Norway saying that democracy-supporting measures are badly needed in times of economic crisis.
"Enlargement happened when economic figures were all pointing upwards. But now we face very different times. Many of the newest members are particularly vulnerable. In those circumstances, investing in civil society is even more important," Ms Schulerud said.
The aim of the grants for NGOs, which can range between €5,000 and €250,000 is to "fill a niche" the EU is not covering.
"When the Norwegian Grants moved in in 2004, foreign donors available for the NGOs, like the Soros Foundation and others, moved eastwards. Enlargement was in a way seen to secure fundamental rights. Our funding has been vital for civil society in these countries as national or local sources have not been able to fill the gap from those that withdrew, and EU funds were not really available for NGOs."
Asked what happens to these NGOs when the projects run out, Ms Schulerud said the funding was not targeting activities only, but also capacity-building in the financial area "helping the NGOs become more sustainable."
Also, Norway is finding more support within the EU commission for these activities and is hoping that more EU funding will become available to NGOs.
Ms Schulerud said she expected many Norway-funded programmes to focus on the situation of Roma in different countries.
"Racism is a challenge, and racism towards the Roma is probably the biggest challenge. There is an EU report stating that they are the biggest discriminated group. At the same time, we feel it's important to focus on youth, whether they are Roma or not - because there is social exclusion of youngsters across ethnicity and culture," she said.
Meanwhile, Oslo is looking to fund not only projects focusing on social problems, but also those which highlight the "strong contribution of Roma to music, to the European cultural identity."
A public consultation process was launched last week until 22 October, with input from various NGOs expected to contribute to the new guidelines which will govern the allocation of funding.