Development Finance for Community Environment and Justice Defenders in Southern Africa

About this grant

The project goal is to increase financing for community justice and environment defenders from mining companies and development finance institutions in Southern Africa. To this end, the Southern Africa Resource Watch will pilot the implementation of its toolkit on community-grievance redress mechanisms in selected communities in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The toolkit allows communities to negotiate financing for their institutions and embeds the principle of free, prior and informed consent. The grantee also plans to use community foundations as an entry point in piloting the implementation of the toolkit. Past support allowed the grantee to research mining companies’ financing practices in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Based on this research, the grantee developed a toolkit to assist in applying better financing practices. The grantee also raised awareness about the toolkit. The Southern Africa Resource Watch is a regional nonprofit organization that promotes the transparent and accountable use of natural resources in Southern Africa.