Kazakhstan Human Rights Activity | 72011521RFA00006

Opportunity Information: Apply for 72011521RFA00006

The "Kazakhstan Human Rights Activity" is a discretionary USAID funding opportunity designed to strengthen the human rights environment in Kazakhstan by widening the practical space for reform and improving how citizens, civil society, and government institutions interact around rights-related issues. At its core, the opportunity aims to create conditions where civil society organizations can better represent public interests and bring citizen concerns into policy conversations, while government bodies become more capable in carrying out their mandates and more responsive and accountable to the people they serve. The activity is framed around the idea that sustainable human rights improvements depend not only on advocacy from outside government, but also on stronger, more transparent engagement and follow-through from within key state institutions.

The program is structured around two main objectives. The first objective focuses on civil society: improving its ability to represent citizen interests more effectively, mobilize and sustain coalitions that can collectively address human rights challenges, and advocate for concrete reforms. In practice, this implies support for activities that help organizations coordinate strategies, strengthen evidence-based advocacy, engage communities, and build networks that can respond to rights violations or systemic gaps. Coalition-building is emphasized, suggesting an interest in efforts that move beyond isolated organizations toward coordinated platforms or partnerships capable of influencing policy and public opinion in a more unified way.

The second objective centers on government performance and accountability. It seeks to improve how the Government of Kazakhstan engages with civil society in ways that support human rights progress, and to increase accountability to citizens. This objective signals that the activity is not solely about funding advocacy; it also supports improving the quality of government-civil society dialogue and encouraging institutions to be more responsive to citizen needs. The goal is to make engagement more meaningful and results-oriented, so that citizen input and civil society expertise translate into better institutional behavior, improved protections, and more reliable avenues for addressing grievances.

From an administrative standpoint, this opportunity was issued by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), specifically USAID-Kazakhstan (USAID-Almaty). The funding instrument is a Cooperative Agreement, which typically indicates a closer working relationship between USAID and the award recipient during implementation compared with a standard grant, including more substantial involvement by the agency in planning, monitoring, or coordination. The activity falls under the funding activity category of Law, Justice and Legal Services and is associated with CFDA number 98.001. USAID anticipated making a single award, with an award ceiling of $800,000, indicating a relatively focused, single-implementer design rather than multiple parallel grants.

The opportunity was created on March 30, 2021, with an original closing date of April 29, 2021. The eligible applicant category is listed broadly as "Others," with additional eligibility details referenced in the full announcement text. Overall, the opportunity describes a targeted, governance-and-rights oriented initiative aimed at improving both the capacity of civil society to advocate and the willingness and ability of government institutions to engage constructively and remain accountable, with the long-term intent of expanding the space for improved human rights protections and responsiveness in Kazakhstan.

• The Agency for International Development, Kazakhstan USAID-Almaty in the law, justice and legal services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Kazakhstan Human Rights Activity" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 98.001.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 30, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Apr 29, 2021. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $800,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for 72011521RFA00006

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