Each regional office makes grants in fields that most effectively address problems in that region. In the Andean Region and Southern Cone, we support efforts in four areas:
Democratic Governance and Civil Society
We make grants to strengthen good governance and to foster social inclusion through participation in civil society and policymaking. We seek to promote and strengthen collaboration between the state and civil society organizations; to build effective and transparent government institutions and practices; and to strengthen the rule of law and advance social equity.
Development Finance and Economic Security
We support innovative efforts to broaden the participation of individuals and communities in social and economic life. Our work builds individual and community assets among marginalized, low-income populations, both urban and rural, to reduce poverty, inequality and social injustice. To secure economic advancement, one of our key efforts supports microfinance and business development institutions.
Education Reform
Our grantees seek to improve the capacity of educational systems and institutions to foster equal access and improve learning among the most disadvantaged populations. We make grants to test education models designed to increase educational achievement in schools serving urban poor, indigenous and Afro-descendant students; to develop empirical research for education officials, scholars and education reform activists; and to build Latin American networks to produce and exchange information and critical analyses of regional education policies.
Human Rights and Citizenship
We support the enforcement of fundamental rights and help build democracies based on the rule of law and the principles of nondiscrimination. This work reflects a comprehensive view of human rights—including civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights—and focuses on two objectives: overcoming mechanisms that systematically discriminate against historically underserved groups and strengthening government institutions to protect all rights.