Rolling deadline

This MacArthur Foundation grant aims to expand and strengthen the network of human rights organisations in Nigeria, Mexico, and Russia that provide the basic infrastructure for a national human rights culture based on the rule of law.

In Nigeria, the grants support leading human rights organisations, both nationally and in selected states. Special attention is given to the issue of police reform, including mechanisms for improving accountability and addressing police abuse of human rights, and efforts to strengthen Nigeria's legal architecture through reform of national laws and domestication of international treaties. Grants are made for work at the national level and for work in four states: Lagos, Kano, Plateau, and Rivers.

In Russia, a limited number of grants are awarded to organisations engaged in research and practical work in the area of human rights. The Foundation is currently accepting letters of inquiry from organisations that provide training or resources for human rights organisations in Russia. Funding inquiries are invited from human rights organisations working in Moscow or one or more of the Foundation's 10 Russian focus regions of Krasnodar, Moscow oblast, Nizhnii Novgorod, Perm, Rostov, Samara, Saratov, Sverdlovsk, Tatarstan, and Voronezh.

In Mexico, to consolidate the human rights movement, grants are made to national and local organisations and networks to monitor and document human rights abuses and, when appropriate, to seek redress for violations through national and international courts. Focus states include Jalisco and Guerrero. Special attention is given to the issue of police reform, including efforts to develop baseline data on policing and human rights and to promote police accountability. Projects that seek to strengthen Mexico's ombudsman system are also a priority.

Grants are awarded only to organisations that define clear objectives for their work and measures of progress toward those objectives. The foundation provides multi-year support. Proposals must fit clearly within the geographic and thematic priorities of the Human Rights and International Justice programme.

Organisations interested in applying for support should submit a letter of inquiry to the Foundation as well as a one-page summary of the proposed project.


The deadline for application is a rolling deadline.

Click here for information on the contents of a letter of inquiry.

Click here for a full set of guidelines for this type of grant.

MacArthur Foundation website on March 27 2009.