Sustain Media: Support to Media Freedom and Pluralism in the Western Balkans

• Eligibility Criteria
  – The applicant should be established and operating in one of the Western Balkans economies;
  – Status of applicant: Independent private sector media company or non-for-profit media outlet/NGO from the Western Balkans. Public broadcasters and state-controlled media are not eligible;
  – Proven commitment to professional and ethical standards of journalism (e.g. through membership in press councils;
  – Adherence or compliance with other relevant recognized mechanisms, platforms, etc. established to promote professional and ethical standards in journalism);
  – Transparent ownership and/or composition, with no involvement of state or state-affiliated entities; nor of senior political actors or their close relatives.
• Type of Funding: Programmatic
• Target Region: Western Balkans
• Application Language: English

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) invites independent media organisations, regional, national and local media outlets, operating in the region of Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo , Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia), to apply for Grants on Media Business Ideas in the framework of the Programme “Sustain Media: Support to Media Freedom and Pluralism in the Western Balkans”, co-funded by the European Union and the German Government.

The Sustain Media Programme is aiming to enhance the capacities of professional independent media organisations to better adapt to the changing media environment, through helping to create modern high-quality content and appropriate business models thereafter.

The primary goal of this Call is to increase economic sustainability and enable growth of independent media organisations.

Objectives

The programme is working to achieve the following objectives:

• Strengthen capacities of media organisations to improve economic performance
• Improve capacities of media organisations for quality reporting
• Enhance regional exchange between media actors, tech companies and innovative business actors

Focus Areas

• Digital Integration: Proposals showcase innovative approaches to digital integration, including leveraging emerging technologies, data analytics, and digital platforms to enhance content delivery and audience engagement.
• Cross Sectoral Partnerships: They highlight potential cooperations with innovative businesses and/or specialised organisations in diverse sectors (i.e IT and digital sector; digital marketing and e-commerce; human rights; arts & culture; science; climate and energy; multimedia, etc), outlining how these partnerships can contribute to revenue generation, audience engagement, and innovation.
• Collaboration with other Media Organisations: Proposals should outline strategies for collaboration with other media entities to amplify content reach, optimising costs through sharing resources, and enhancing journalistic impact. Collaborations between national and local media are particularly encouraged.

Target

Independent media organisations, regional, national, and local media outlets, from WB6: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.

Funding Information

• Grant Size: up to EUR 20,000
• No of Grants to be awarded: approximately 15
• Grant Duration: up to 1 year

See here to learn more and apply.

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