Launched in 2021 for seven years, the CERV programme has a budget of over 1.5 billion euros. The main groups eligible for funding are civil society organisations active at local, regional, national and transnational levels but also European networks, public authorities (including equality and human rights bodies), national, regional and local authorities, towns and municipalities, academia/research institutes, think tanks, the judiciary, international organisations and other stakeholders active in promoting EU values and rights.
The funded projects include training, capacity building and exchanges of good practices between EU countries’ authorities and bodies, town twinning, supporting grassroots organisations and civil society, raising people’s awareness about their rights and the benefits that EU policies bring to their daily lives, and supporting the development of knowledge-based EU policies and legislation through surveys, studies, and analyses. The programme also supports developing the capacity of key EU-level networks (notably EQUINET, the EU network of equality bodies).
