The non governmental organisation Bridge for Human Rights is applying a €45,000 grant from the Czech NGO fund to implement two projects promoting cultural diversity in the regions Pardubice and Hradec Kralove. The main aim of the two projects is to stimulate and encourage respect and understanding between the different ethnic groups living in the region.
One of the activities now receiving support from the NGO fund is a mobile counselling centre. The centre offers guidance and practical advice on employment, social issues and legal questions for foreign nationals in the regions, where a large number of Vietnamese and Ukrainian families have settled down. The Bridge for Human Rights estimates that they will be able to offer advisory services to more than 300 persons in their own local area. The NGO has also initiated a project to bring together Czech and foreign nationals through organised home visits, providing an opportunity for neighbours from different cultural backgrounds to get to know each other better.
The €10 million Czech fund to support NGOs was launched in 2006 under the EEA and Norway Grants. The fund supports NGO projects that serve to promote human rights and a multicultural society, provide support to disadvantaged children and youth, and protect the environment.