Grant Competition for Content Production

The competition is held as part of the regional project “Increasing audience resilience through authentic stories (CARAVAN)”, implemented by Internews with financial support from the European Union. The project has been implemented in Central Asian countries since April 1, 2024.

Internews will provide the winners of the competition with the opportunity to participate in trainings, webinars, a mentoring program, and also receive consulting support from media experts to improve the quality of content.

Funding Information

• An independent jury will select the nine best applications (about two or three from each Central Asian country) with a budget of up to 10 thousand euros each.
• Project implementation period is up to 11 months (up to eight months for applicants from Uzbekistan), the expected start date of the project is August 1, 2024.

What projects are they looking for?

• They expect that the content produced within the framework of the project will improve access to high-quality socially significant information for residents of Central Asian countries, will facilitate the analysis of consumed information and will help citizens make informed decisions to improve the quality of their lives, as well as:
  • expand understanding of how current events and processes affect the region as a whole and each country in particular;
  • counteracts disinformation and fakes, explains their nature and goals;
  • counters hate speech and incitement to hatred between different social groups of people;
  • highlights the possibilities of regional trade and economic integration to enter the global market;
  • reveals the topic of labor migration and its impact on the population in Central Asia, especially on women and girls;
  • covers environmental topics, climate change and water use in the region;
  • highlights important geopolitical processes, including wars and conflicts that affect the region and country;
  • strengthens the ideas of establishing/maintaining peace and developing tolerance in Central Asia;
  • promotes dialogue between different audiences and helps find common ground and solutions to problems within these communities;
  • stimulates discussions about common values ​​in the region, expands rights and opportunities for civic engagement among the population;
  • highlights common problems of women and other vulnerable groups, including deep-rooted stereotypes in society and the fight against these stereotypes.

Competition Results

• The list of competition winners will be published in July 2024. The winning teams will be given one week to finalize the project, draw up the final budget according to the comments of the jury members and collect the necessary documents for concluding the contract. The implementation of projects by teams will begin after signing the contracts.

Who can take part?

• The competition is open to local independent media, production studios, arts groups, civil society organizations (NGOs) and other interested content creators (bloggers, freelancers, journalists, etc.).
• Important conditions: 1) the applicant must be registered as a legal entity in accordance with local legislation (with the exception of applicants from Uzbekistan, where funding will be provided in the form of a scholarship); 2) the applicant must submit an application and implement the project together with one or more partners from other Central Asian countries.

For more information, visit Internews.