General Purposes
AGORA Platform: Active Communities for Development Alternatives
- Program Civil Society
- Program Area Special Initiatives
- Grant Amount $120,000
- Grant Period January 1, 2011–December 31, 2013
- Location Sofia, Bulgaria
- Geographic Focus Bulgaria
About this grant
The program goal is to support the development of local communities and grassroots organizations in Bulgaria. The AGORA Platform: Active Communities for Development Alternatives supports the network of Bulgarian chitalishte and increases chitalishte capacity to bring positive changes and development in local communities. A chitalishte is a specific, Bulgarian, community-based, nongovernmental institution with a 200-year history of supporting literacy, education, and community development. During the grant period, the grantee will build chitalishte capacity by providing information, training, and technical assistance; increase the support for chitalishte by establishing effective partnerships with relevant governmental and nongovernmental institutions; and develop its own organizational capacity by strengthening its human resources, diversifying its funding base, and developing new services. The grantee’s achievements in 2008-2010 included experimenting successfully with innovative community development approaches, expanding and strengthening its membership, and establishing strong partnerships with relevant governmental and nongovernmental organizations.