MATRA stands for maatschappelijke transformatie, meaning ‘social transformation’ aiming to enact societies in which fundamental freedoms are guaranteed. The MATRA Fund is part of our support to current, and potential, EU candidate countries and supplements the European Commission’s efforts and aims to help countries strengthen democracy and the rule of law, thus enhance stability.

Human rights are the foundation of democracy and ensure that every person counts and is protected.  The Netherlands strives to protect and promote human rights all over the world. The Human Rights Fund therefore supports organisations with similar goals.

The government of the Netherlands attaches particular importance to these Funds, as it aims to reinforce and promote shared European values – values that connect European countries, bridging their cultural diversity. A strong and pluralist democracy under the rule of law, stable democratic processes and good governance are part of these values and of the agenda for Europe. The Embassy in Pristina is looking forward to jointly endorse these principles and receiving your organizations’ ideas to achieve this.

The Embassy in Pristina works on the basis of the following mission:

We strive for the Euro-Atlantic integration of a safe, prosperous, inclusive and democratic Kosovo that provides equal opportunities for its citizens as this forms the best guarantee for a mutual beneficiary relation with the Netherlands and the European Union.

What types of projects are eligible?

The MATRA and HR Funds support demand-driven initiatives. Project proposals have to be in line with our policy priorities and the mission statement. To be eligible for support, projects must promote the process of transformation in the following areas:

• Promoting Rule of Law and strengthening transparency and accountability of public and justice institutions;
• Promoting the European Integration agenda;
• Promoting  reconciliation between communities via civic engagement and supporting efforts on the internal dialogue;
• Preventing radicalization and violent extremism;
• Increasing cyber security capacities;
• Strengthening the LGBTI+ community, media freedom and women’s rights;

What are the minimum requirements?

• Applications are only taken into consideration when the Embassy provided formats are used (Appendix A for the proposal, Appendix B for the budget overview. Please note that Appendix B contains an example of a project budget. Remove the example data and adjust the table as needed to your project);
• Provide a short video (of maximum 1 minute) with the application in which you tell us why we need to support your project and how you make sure that results translate into sustainable impact;
• Applications must be relevant to the specific MATRA objectives as highlighted above;
• The project needs to reinvigorate the local ownership of the issue that forms the business case / reason for the project;
• The applicant should contribute to the project (financial or in kind). This needs to be specified clearly in the activities and budget overview;
• The applicant preferably has a yearly turnover of a minimum of EUR 100.000 for at least three consecutive years. In case your organization does not meet this criteria, we encourage partnerships with organizations that do;
• The project has a maximum duration of 24 months;
• If other donors are involved, you need to specify this in the application and budget forms. It needs to be clear which donor contribution goes to the different activities;
• Beneficiary organisations need to provide a statement in which they underline their commitment to this project;
• EUR 100.000 per project is our maximum support. Make sure the budget complies with the following minimum requirements. Use the enclosed budget template:

• Not more than 30% of our contribution goes to salaries. Concerning the staff involved in the project (regular and contracted) provide information on the hours / percentage of the time that they are directly involved in the project activities and provide the hourly rate / wage for their involvement;
• Not more than 10% of the contribution can be allocated to Administrative Costs (rent, utilities, office material, communication, bank fees). Only Administrative Costs directly involved in the project are eligible for financial support (e.g. the proportion of the rental costs for the office space that will be used directly for the project activities);
• Not more than 10% of the contribution can be used for study trips or tours. Please indicate in case of study tour why this is necessary and specify why the location / country of destination is chosen.

Preference is given to proposals that:

• Use innovative ways to tackle issues (involve the private sector, use a broad coalition that share a common concern, make use of digital tools, have a clear media strategy).
• Are gender sensitive;
• Are risk aware and realistic;
• Are inclusive and create equal access to project results for all groups in society. In this sense we encourage organisations to set up activities in areas where needs are higher, e.g. activities outside the capital or within underrepresented communities;
• Are sustainable in nature, and aim for sustainable improvements;
• Are cost sensitive, whenever possible seek in kind contributions, use alliances with the business community, work with volunteers etc;

Not eligible are:

• Humanitarian aid;
• Commercial activities;
• Business registered organisations;
• Projects with a predominantly academic focus, i.e. feasibility studies, research etc.;
• Projects that exclusively or largely include the delivery of goods or materials;
• Infrastructural or construction projects;
• Scholarships or education programmes;

Co-financing with other donors is possible provided, when:

• The applicant provides statements from the other donor(s) on their motivation to finance project activities and;
• A clear, transparent description is given of the division of activities and how the different donors contribute to these activities.

The application procedure

• The deadline for submitting project proposals is December 15, 2023. The Embassy exclusively considers applications submitted according to the formats provided (use Appendix A for the proposal and Appendix B for the budget overview);
• Please send an email at PRI-PROJECTS@minbuza.nl with the subject “MATRA and Human Rights Fund 2024” to receive Appendix A for the proposal and Appendix B for the budget overview;
• Please send in a maximum one minute short video in which you (or preferably a beneficiary of your project) explains why we need to support this project;
• Proposals must meet the minimum requirements;
• Application and video must be submitted to the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Kosovo; at  PRI-PROJECTS@minbuza.nl
• Application and video should be submitted by the project organisers themselves, though they may be assisted by third parties, such as Dutch NGO’s;
• Applications should be submitted in English. The video needs to be in English too or can be in one of the official languages, Albanian or Serbian, but has to be substituted with an English translation- subtitles or voice-over;
• The applicant must sign all documents submitted for the application.

Approval, contract, payment and reporting

If the project is approved, the applicant will receive two copies of the contract, outlining the conditions of the grant. One copy must be signed and returned to Embassy of the Netherlands. Upon its receipt, the first instalment of the grant will be transferred.

The maximum duration is two years (24 months). The applicant is required to submit mid-term and final account and financial reports on the results achieved. The final account and financial reports have to be submitted within one month after the finalisation of the project. The accounts should describe activities carried out to date, activities still planned (if any), problems encountered, achievements, lessons learned, etc. Upon approval of these documents, the Embassy will pay the remaining instalment(s). The Embassy reserves the right to inspect the project accounts and activities at any time.