New municipal partnership projects approved by ICLD, totalling over SEK 8 million.
The approved democracy projects will run for 12 months, with a total of SEK 8,160,000 allocated across various initiatives. Partner countries include Botswana, Colombia, Kenya, Uganda, and Ukraine. While the project themes vary, they all share the same objective: to strengthen democratic development at the local level.
Partnership projects with Ukraine
Kalmar, Lidingö, Västerås, and Gotland in Sweden have all been granted new projects with partner municipalities in Ukraine. These collaborations began around a year ago, and the partners have now been awarded new project funding. For the City of Västerås, this means two approved projects in partnership with their Ukrainian counterpart, Shatsk. All of the partnerships are part of ICLD’s Democratic Resilience Network.
Health equality is a democratic right
Access to good healthcare is very much a democratic issue. Within ICLD’s Equal Health Partnership Network, several partnerships have been granted new projects. All of these build on existing work. Funding has been granted to the following partnerships: Region Stockholm with Jinja, Region Västerbotten with Homa Bay, and Region Östergötland with Uasin Gishu.
Project to strengthen the rights of young LGBTQI people
Upplands-Bro and the municipality of Maicao in northern Colombia are entirely new partners. Their collaboration will focus on sharing experiences and learning from one another on how to promote and strengthen the rights of young LGBTQI people.
“The goal of the partnership is to develop an action plan that can serve as a concrete tool in both Upplands-Bro and Maicao to empower young LGBTQI people and strengthen their rights, bringing increased focus to this important issue,” says Hanna Rydstedt Nencioni, Head of Culture and Leisure at Upplands-Bro Municipality. Read more about the Upplands-Bro–Maicao partnership. The partnership is part of ICLD’s Gender Equality Network.
All newly approved partnership projects:
Region Gotland and Beryslav, Ukraine – supporting young adults returning to Beryslav after being forcibly displaced by the war, in a context where much of the infrastructure has been destroyed and areas have been mined.
Kalmar Municipality and Poltava, Ukraine – strengthening community crisis preparedness by increasing public participation in emergency response.
The City of Lidingö and Slavuta, Ukraine – strengthening the education system by promoting critical thinking, democratic values, and improved support for students and teachers.
The City of Västerås and Shatsk, Ukraine – focusing on sustainable waste management with an emphasis on children and young people.
Region Stockholm and Jinja, Uganda – two projects centred on children’s rights in healthcare.
Region Västerbotten and Homa Bay, Kenya – establishing a steering committee for an ongoing project.
Region Östergötland and Uasin Gishu, Kenya – focusing on cancer care and participation.
Upplands-Bro Municipality and Maicao, Colombia – strengthening the rights of young LGBTQI people from a gender equality perspective.
Bollnäs Municipality and Lobatse, Botswana – working on sustainable place and destination development, including community and youth engagement.
Strängnäs Municipality and Entebbe, Uganda – promoting youth engagement in climate issues.