[{"bbox": [82, 147, 1141, 433], "category": "Table", "text": "<table><tr><td></td><td>Barriers to implementation</td><td>Low</td><td>Medium</td><td>Information sessions for consortia formation</td></tr><tr><td>Institutional Risks</td><td>Fiduciary misconduct</td><td>Low</td><td>Medium</td><td>Regular monitoring and capacity building to CSOs on finance and administration, grants management</td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Inadequate capacity of management board or partners</td><td>Low</td><td>Medium</td><td>Ensuring dedicated staff for fund management and participation</td></tr></table>"}, {"bbox": [92, 435, 253, 458], "category": "Section-header", "text": "Lessons Learnt:"}, {"bbox": [92, 480, 1133, 856], "category": "Text", "text": "Notable contextual risks include declining government commitment to the SDG 16 and 5 political changes or political instabilities. As regards shrinking space for civil society, Bangladesh CSOs are currently navigating a repressed to closed space, especially for rights-based organisations, with various success levels. Important lessons learned stem from a range of sensitive projects funded by the EU focusing on democracy, freedom of speech, and human rights during the 2023/2024 election period. Despite significant delays in some critical projects, the EU managed to secure funding for all initiatives through sustained political engagement. With civil society spaces for civic engagement contracting, it is vital to actively preserve current spaces and, where feasible, restore and reclaim those that have been lost. It is also a reality of the civic space, that the closing does not affect all organisations in the same way, with some (usually those more in alignment with government or engaging in service delivery type of activities) are facing less restrictions compared to rights-based organisations. Despite the restrictive environment, a range of organisations have proven experience in navigating the existing space and to ensure successful implementation of project in support of SDG 16 and 5."}, {"bbox": [92, 868, 1133, 956], "category": "Text", "text": "The DPs will continue to lobby for the SDG agenda and a favourable operational CSO context. The elections took place in early 2024 and as expected the post-election environment does not represent a significant departure from the status quo."}, {"bbox": [92, 968, 1133, 1286], "category": "Text", "text": "Programmatic risks thus include changes of the government's agenda, DPs ability to create collective momentum and coordination, limited buy-in from key government stakeholders or concrete barriers to implementation such as approvals by the government regulating agency, the NGO Affairs Bureau (NGOAB), of specific projects or specific CSOs. As regards interaction with the NGOAB, the fund is expected to set up a coordination structure that will allow for better alignment of DPs when interacting with the NGOAB in a more regular and structured manner. Experience has shown that CSOs are skilfully navigating approval processes and that donor interventions have largely managed to resolve concerns or blockages of the NGOAB. Other risks are challenges regarding the capacity of CSO implementing partners or lack of interest or ability to establish consortia relevant for the funding windows. This will be mitigated by investing in CSO capacity building in parallel to providing funding and information sessions about the funding windows where consortia are encouraged."}, {"bbox": [92, 1299, 1133, 1472], "category": "Text", "text": "Institutional risks include fiduciary misconduct or corruption, or low administrative and financial capacities of grantees, in the management of grants (regular monitoring and capacity building on financial management is foreseen), inadequate capacity of the Programme Management Board or implementing partners (should be a minor risk as all partners have dedicated staff managing the fund), limited development partner buy-in, funding (as it stands, there is interest from further DPs)) or inability to mobilise for increased coordination with CSO and government dialogue."}, {"bbox": [92, 1485, 1133, 1543], "category": "Text", "text": "**From a programmatic standpoint, the EU will contribute lessons-learnt from the Platform for Dialogue (P4D) project.**"}, {"bbox": [92, 1555, 1133, 1642], "category": "Text", "text": "Overall, the goal and objective of the P4D project were highly relevant for the country and set a high level of ambition for the intended impact of the work. While the project achieved notable successes in certain areas, particularly at the local and district levels, the wider external context in which the project"}, {"bbox": [85, 1681, 203, 1706], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 16 of 33"}]