The Irish Society in Vietnam

Civil Society Policy

Irish Aid believes that Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) allow citizens to come together to act collectively and participate in the development of their own communities whether through demanding better services from the state, holding the government to account or by acting together to respond to their own needs. Civil society should equally be given an opportunity to participate in the planning, implementation and monitoring of the national development plan and poverty reduction programmes. Irish Aid has a long tradition of and is committed to supporting civil society.

Partnership is the cornerstone of Irish Aid’s civil society policy. Our existing partnerships with CSOs are a valuable resource and comparative advantage of Irish Aid in Vietnam. Partnership also refers to the relationship between the government, both central and local levels, and the civil society. We coordinate with other donors and international NGOs to support civil society’s capacity needs and to advocate for institutional space for citizen participation in development processes. Partnerships between INGOs and local NGOs are encouraged by Irish Aid with focus on improving the ability of organisations to engage in innovative solutions to accessing services, qualitative research, advocacy and networking.

Vietnam Civil Society Facility

The Vietnam Civil Society Facility (CSF) was established in 2007 and is administered by the Embassy of Ireland in Hanoi. The Facility  supports grant funding to short and medium term interventions which can demonstrate either a direct poverty impact or an influencing or testing value, and which are compatible with the Irish Aid Country Strategy Paper’s objectives.

The overall objective of the CSF is to strengthen the engagement of CSOs in support of specific poverty issues and policy formulation processes. The CSF will support competitive proposals that contribute to the following objectives:

(1) To strengthen the voice of poor communities and community-based organisations in local governance and accountability, oversight of public investment programmes and increased economic integration.  Particular attention will be paid to ethnic minority populations;
(2) To promote acceptance and empowerment of people with disability by increasing their social and economic integration;
(3) To promote the development of the civil society sector in Vietnam through capacity building and networking and collective action in research and advocacy and public education.

For more information on Irish Aid see vcsf.vn