24.04.2020
News

KIOS Annual Report 2019 published

The annual report for 2019 of the KIOS Foundation presents our achievements from last year.

In many countries, 2019 was a year of closing civil society and tightening control. KIOS kept funding the work of local human rights defenders in developing countries. During the year, KIOS funded 46 human rights organisations – 26 of them in East Africa and 20 in South Asia.

“In 2019 KIOS has been supporting important legal battles, defending the rights of sexual and ethnic minorities and adequate health care. We can proudly announce also some legal successes by our partners. Many battles are still ongoing. Governments and corporations need to respect the rights of minorities and poor citizens,” says Mr. Kim Remitz, Executive Director of KIOS.

Some results from 13 projects, which ended in 2019:

  • 800 000 people benefitted directly from human rights work funded by KIOS
  • 24 000 rights-holders and 800 duty-bearers received human rights education
  • 2000 people received legal aid or counselling
  • 17 human rights reports were published
  • 10 strategic litigation cases were funded

In 2019, KIOS partners worked in diverse ways to promote and protect human rights. This included increasing awareness of human rights among Dalit women in Nepal, addressing issues of baby stealing using the courts of law in Uganda, and working to repeal criminalization of homosexuality in Kenya.

In 2019, the top five themes in our projects were:

  • women’s rights and gender equality
  • rule of law and democracy
  • human rights in conflicts and crises
  • economic, social and cultural rights
  • security of human rights defenders at risk

KIOS directed funding to protecting and promoting the rights of vulnerable and marginalized groups, such as refugees and migrants, Dalits, prisoners, children, sexual and gender minorities, victims of human rights violations and human rights defenders at risk. At the moment, KIOS is the only civil society actor in Finland funding LGBTIQ+ organisations in developing countries. In 2019, KIOS funded 4 LGBTIQ+ projects in East Africa and South Asia.

In Finland, KIOS’s work in 2019 focused on raising awareness on the situation of human rights defenders and on LGBTIQ+ rights in Africa.

Download our annual report to read more about our work in 2019!

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