The Canadian High Commission in Georgetown has announced that the 2023 recipient of the Local Engagement and Action Fund (LEAF) grant of CAD$86,625 would be awarded to local NGO, the National Coordinating Coalition (NCC).
In a release yesterday, the Fund explained that NCC was selected for its innovative project titled “Combatting Gender-Based Violence against Women & Girls in Migrant & Host Communities.” The initiative focuses on Venezuelan migrant women and girls in Guyana and aims to address various gaps in Gender-Based Violence (GBV) services, including lack of awareness, poor service quality, and discrimination against migrants.
The grant agreement was formalised in an official signing ceremony held last Friday at the Field Support Services Project – Caribbean (FSSP-C) Guyana Satellite Office. Present at the ceremony were Deputy Director and Head of Cooperation in Guyana at Global Affairs Canada, Adam Loyer, and NCC Executive Director, Simone Sills.
LEAF is a grant mechanism under the FSSP-C funded by Global Affairs Canada and launched on April 20. Designed to empower organisations working in vulnerable sectors, LEAF offers both short-term (six to twelve months) and long-term (twelve to twenty-four months) grants, ranging from CA$20,000 to CA$100,000. These grants, the release explained, can be used for various operational aspects, including capacity building, technical support, and administrative services. Further, LEAF has the potential to address a range of issues, including: gender equality, human rights, environment, climate change and biodiversity, sexual and reproductive health rights, gender-based violence, youth engagement, and strengthening organisational effectiveness.
According to the release, NCC plans to collaborate with local government agencies and civil society organizations to strengthen Gender-Based Violence (GBV) referral pathways, improve the quality of GBV services, and raise awareness about these critical services. The project also aims to address the issue of xenophobia, which often poses a barrier to accessing these essential services.
Participants expressed optimism that this partnership between Global Affairs Canada, FSSP-C and the National Coordinating Coalition will yield significant results in improving the lives of vulnerable women and girls in Guyana, the release added.
