Funding Criteria

Eligible countries

KIOS funds projects that aim at promotion or protection of human rights in the developing countries that are eligible for Official Development Aid (according to the OECD DAC list of developing countries and territories).

Type of projects

KIOS support can be used to the promotion of the concept of human rights, on the promotion of human rights norms, and on raising human rights awareness and knowledge.

Typical projects funded by KIOS include:

• Human rights awareness raising and education
• Human rights campaigning, lobbying and advocacy
• Human rights monitoring and documentation
• Providing legal aid
• Capacity building

Support may also be provided for other types of human rights related projects, and we welcome proposals from organisations that employ unconventional and innovative methods in their activities.

Funding is not granted for development work, educational projects (unless human rights education), social work, humanitarian aid, research projects or socio-economic support for marginalized groups. Furthermore, KIOS does not grant scholarships, fellowships, or financial support for conferences or travelling.

Grant size & Budget

There is no set limit to the amount of grant that can be applied for.

The budget must be presented in the local currency of the country.

The budget of the project should be realistic in relation to local price level, project activities and to the capacity and previous experience of the applicant organisation.

The grantee is expected to provide a self-financing share of a minimum 7,5 % of the total costs of the project funded by KIOS. State the self-financing clearly in the proposed budget.

Other Finnish funding

Funding can not be granted to projects or programmes that are already funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, for instance through Local Cooperation Funds of Finnish Embassies.

Project duration

The first KIOS grant is always for a one year (or shorter) project. Applications requesting funding for longer projects will not be registered and handled by KIOS. 

Requirements

The KIOS Executive Board’s decisions on financial support are made on the basis of the project’s substance and feasibility, and applicant organisation’s capacity to carry out the project.

The following will be considered when deciding on the financial support:

• The potential of the project to promote or protect human rights
• The capacity of the applicant to carry out a human rights project 
• Professionalism in human rights and previous experience of human rights work
• Proven experience of project and financial management
• Previous experience of projects funded by international agencies
• The project objectives and their achievability by the proposed project activities
• The budget of the project in relation to local price level, project activities and to the capacity and previous experience of the applicant organisation