EU Ambassador Mette Sunnergren's Remarks at Media Briefing on the EU's Commitment to Supporting Civil Society Organisations in Lesotho Against Gender-Based Violence

Welcome you all to this media briefing on EU support to civil society organizations, an event in the framework of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. 

The EU remains deeply concerned with the ongoing prevalence of gender-based and domestic violence in Lesotho. According to Lesotho Country Profiles produced by the OECD, 40% of women aged 15-49 have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by a current or former partner at least once during their lifetime. 

Sexual offences and crimes resulting from gender-based violence remain alarmingly persistent. We recognize the imperative to continuously address GBV—aspects ranging from prevention and prosecution to providing comprehensive support for survivors are paramount.

Ending GBV and promoting gender parity is a shared goal with the Government of Lesotho, civil society, and international partners. Thus, joint campaigns like the 16 Days of Activism are vital, and we warmly welcome initiatives that bolster sector coordination.

The EU is committed to supporting Lesotho institutions and communities in the fight against GBV. We are supporting justice institutions – like the judiciary, the DPP, the legal aid unit - through initiatives like the "Support for the Reform and Strengthening of Governance in Lesotho," to handle and provide adequate response to GBV cases. 

We are supporting communities via the work of civil society – the focus of our media brief today. 

Let me recognise and celebrate the presence of our civil society organizations here today. 

The European Union considers civil society to be a key partner, both on a global scale and here in Lesotho. Civil society is central to driving change and facilitating service delivery, advocacy, governance, and community development throughout Lesotho. Over the years, we have committed significant resources to support civil society-led initiatives, providing regular calls for projects to empower these organizations to enact positive change. 

Our ongoing efforts in Lesotho, amounting to EUR 8.45 million (LSL 168.5 million), actively focus on youth grassroots organizations, promoting social accountability, protecting human rights (with special emphasis on women and children), and combating gender-based violence.

This includes four recently signed grants totalling EUR 2.87 million with the partners here in the room: International Commission of Jurists, Gender Links, Sesotho Media and Development and Catholic Relief Services, reinforcing our dedication to gender equality, women's economic empowerment, and climate justice. These initiatives aim to address crucial issues such as access to clean water, sanitation, and energy solutions.

Let me congratulate them for their engagement, and I look forward to the roll out of their activities, and the multiplier effect these can have, especially with regards to targeted behavioural change campaigns, and provision of data. With this grant for instance, Gender links will be able to update the study on Gender based violence from 2016. Let me say no more, as I will hand them over the floor shortly to present publicly their upcoming activities.

CSOs have been integral to the success and oversight of our broader bilateral programs, such as ReNOKA, the Justice programmes, and the Youth Power Hub. The aim of the Youth Power Hub, a joint initiative of the EU, UNICEF, and IOM, is to strengthen the capacities of more than 30 grassroots youth-focused CSOs, empowering them to influence change and address key issues within their communities.

In advancing electoral participation for women and marginalized groups, the Inclusive Lesotho Programme will allocate small grants to foster advocacy and awareness-raising initiatives. These initiatives will challenge existing social norms, improve access to electoral processes, encourage political engagement, and secure representation for underrepresented groups.

Let me highlight some of the most recent initiatives we have launched to integrate civil society more deeply into our external relations and development efforts: 

An ongoing call for proposals focusing on protecting Human rights defenders and witnesses, and fighting corruption (including via investigative journalism and citizens’ journalism), with a budget of 1.419.000 EUR. The deadline for submission of proposal is February 03 and for all those interested, we have organised an information session on December 12.

Structured dialogue: Our approach emphasizes engaging with local civil society organisations (CSOs), particularly through dialogue and consultations. Listening to local CSOs is crucial for safeguarding and advancing shared democratic values in EU partner countries. 

This approach aims to empower CSOs as independent, empowered, inclusive actors, moving beyond the traditional donor-recipient relationship. 

A first dialogue in this renewed format took place on November 24 this year and others have been carried out in selected districts by our experts, engaged by Particip consulting, in view of consolidating a systematic and ongoing partnership with CSOs. Notably, CSOs will be actively involved not only in traditional areas of discussion but also in non-traditional sectors that align with the Global Gateway priorities and our Multi-annual Indicative Programme (MIP) objectives. 

Particip is also currently engaged in drafting an extensive mapping of civil society organisations in Lesotho, which will serve as the foundational step for our strategic roadmap. 

Through the survey undertaken as part of this mapping exercise, CSOs have been actively involved, to reflect realities and dynamics on the ground. This mapping aims to produce detailed profiles of CSOs, examining their involvement in governance, policy formulation, service delivery, and local development. 

Key areas of focus include their missions, areas of activity, interests, influence, and their capacity to drive change, supported by political economy analyses. The mapping also assesses spaces for engagement, identifying barriers to meaningful participation, and establishing impactful partnerships for accountability.

Finally, the mapping will also provide critical information to guide the update of a comprehensive strategy, the EU CSO Roadmap, aimed at enhancing CSO engagement in governance, policy, and service delivery. It will pinpoint leverage points where CSOs can influence projects and policies, identify capacity gaps—such as representation of constituencies, affected communities, and vulnerable groups—and highlight EU support and partnership opportunities.

EU Civil Society Roadmaps serve as a unified strategic framework that guides the EU Delegations and Member States in their collaborative efforts to empower civil society at the national level. 

This includes strengthening policy discussions, better integrating various funding sources, and providing support to help these organisations grow stronger in an enabling environment. 

By doing this, the CSO Roadmaps ensure that the important contributions of civil society to governance and development are acknowledged and enhanced. Additionally, the Roadmaps help coordinate efforts between EU Delegations, Member States, and other lined donors, leading to a more coherent approach to working with civil society.

In Lesotho, this strategic framework is being revitalized with the expertise of NIRAS consultancy, updating the roadmap for the period 2021-2023. The 2021-2023 roadmap identified the following as main challenges and opportunities: 1) The Enabling Environment: CSOs have expressed that the overall enabling environment is still conducive to their work. However, they also perceive that the enabling environment is shrinking. 2) Political Environment: CSOs feel that the consultative space is getting more exclusive and out of reach for the wider public. 3) CSOs lack access to a reliable and continuous source of funds, both domestically and internationally. The number of international partners who provide funding is very limited in Lesotho while domestic funding is absent.

In the dialogues held so far, we heard Civil society’s concern on CSOs lack access to reliable and continuous funds, need of better training in specific sector like water and energy, and suggestion on improving sector coordination and inter sector coordination between CSOs, improve peer to peer collaboration, strengthening capacity of CSOs especially in technical issues (water, energy). 

Indeed, the feedback we are receiving from civil society organizations during the dialogues is crucial for shaping our strategies and improving our initiatives in Lesotho, be in the field of gender, participation, renewable energy and green economy. 

In closing, I want to emphasize the practical significance of our partnership with civil society organizations. CSOs insights and experiences on the ground provide a critical perspective that helps us address challenges more effectively and adapt our approaches to better meet the needs of communities.

Thank you for your commitment and collaboration