Funded by: Global Affairs Canada

Project Duration: 6 March 2025 to 30 June 2030

Geographic Coverage: 29 Districts across 65 Upazilas
(Dhaka, Bandarban, Kurigram, Netrokona, Khulna, Jashore, Barishal, Lakkhipur, Kishoreganj, Patukhali, Cumilla, Norail, Kustia, Pirojpur, Tangail, Pabna, Satkhira, Bhola, Rajshahi, Bogura, Khagrachori, Faridpur, Sylhet, Rangamati, Jamalpur, Narayanganj, Mymensingh, Dinajpur, Jhenaidah)

Total Budget: Canadian Dollars (CAN $9.5 million)

About RWVL Bangladesh: Renewed Women’s Voice and Leadership (RWVL) program is a global initiative by Global Affairs Canada. It aims to address the global funding gap for women’s organizations, particularly those working at the intersection of multiple forms of discrimination and those in conflict-affected and crisis-affected countries, which receive even less funding. The RWVL Bangladesh project aims to support Local Women’s Rights Organizations (WROs), Feminist Organizations (FOs), Community-Based Organizations (CBOs), women’s networks, gender-diverse groups, and promote gender equality and the rights of women and girls in all their diversity. The project seeks to empower these groups to promote women’s human rights, increase women’s participation as social and economic entrepreneurs, reduce gender-based violence, ensure safe migration, raise voices for women’s solidarity, empower women, and foster women’s leadership in Bangladesh.

Since 2019, MJF has launched the Women’s Voice and Leadership (WVL) Program. In April 2023, Canada announced the renewal and expansion of the program as the Renewed Women’s Voice and Leadership (RWVL) initiative, with an increased focus on women’s rights organizations, gender-diverse groups, and feminist activists and movements worldwide. The WVL program in Bangladesh helped grow local and small women’s organizations by promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment, and by safeguarding women’s human rights in socially excluded communities. Based on lessons learned and evaluation reports from the WVL Bangladesh project, MJF developed the RWVL project. This evidence-based feedback shaped RWVL to build on strengths while addressing gaps, especially those involving multiple forms of discrimination. By offering more inclusive, responsive, and sustainable support, RWVL-B aims to strengthen the capacity, resilience, and leadership of feminist movements.

Project Reach:
The project aims to create a significant, measurable impact across the country:

• Direct Reach: 70,000 women, girls, gender-diverse individuals, and men through multi-year funding to 22 WROs.
• Indirect Reach: 130,000 people through discrete &short-term financial support to local WROs /networks /forums through fast response fund.

Inclusive Target Populations: Ethnic Women and Girls, Dalit Women and Girls, Women and Girls with Disability, Women Sex Workers, Potential and Returnee Women Migrant Workers, Urdu-speaking women and girls living in camps, Women and Girls living in Slums, Women and girls living in riverine chars, Gender Diverse Groups & Trans Women, Rural Women and Girls

Thematic Areas:

Project Focus:

Funding Mechanisms:

• Multi-Year Core Funding (MYCF)
• Fast Responsive Funding (FRF)

Grant Category and Sizes
Multi-year Fund: Allows grant directly to “Women Rights Organizations” (WROs) to implement set activities at grassroots.

Category	Grant Amount in BDT	Grant Amount in Equivalent CAD (maximum)
Micro	Up to BDT 80,00,000	CAD 94,000
Small	From BDT 80,00,001 to BDT 1,20,00,000	CAD 141,000
Medium	From BDT 1,20,000,01 to BDT 2,00,00,000	CAD 235,000
Large	From BDT 2,00,00,001 to BDT 2,30,00,000	CAD 270,000

Fast Responsive Fund: Fast Response Fund: This component provides fast, responsive funding for discrete activities and short projects to support local/regional WROs, gender diverse groups, and WHRDs in addressing unforeseen challenges, opportunities, or urgent events.

 

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