About Project

Strengthened Civic Engagement for Enhanced Democratic Local Governance in Türkiye Project (Civic Engagement Project) is financed by EU in the framework of Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance II (IPA II) funds and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The Beneficiary institution of the Project is the Union of Municipalities of Türkiye (UMT) and the co-Beneficiary institution is the Ministry of Interior, Directorate General for Relations with Civil Society (DGRCS). Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Directorate for EU Affairs (DEUA) as the Lead Institution of the civil society sub-sector under IPA II period aims to coordinate relevant efforts for the effective implementation and monitoring of the Project. The implementation period of the Project is January 2023 and September 2025 and the total contract amount is 5,8 million USD.  60% of the total budget will be allocated to the projects developed in partnership of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and local/public administrations through Civic Engagement Small Grant Programme.

Civic Engagement Project aims to strengthen civic engagement and volunteerism in Türkiye for an enhanced democratic local governance. The objectives of the Project are to increase the capacity of CSOs in decision-making process, enhance the CSO-public cooperation based on a mutual understanding and trust and to support establishing an enabling and sustainable environment for volunteerism. The Project also aims to develop a draft that will form the basis of the legal framework regarding volunteerism in Türkiye through strengthening the dialogue and cooperation between CSOs and public institutions.