In 2022, RACI once again collaborated in the co-management of the New Zealand Embassy Fund in Mexico. In this edition, the process was divided into two parts; in the first phase, 427 applications were received from: Mexico (380), Guatemala (13), El Salvador (11), Nicaragua (9), Costa Rica (1), Panama (2), Dominican Republic (9), and Cuba (2).
Proposals were evaluated using a scoring system, analyzing the following categories: organizational profile, project feasibility, thoroughness, impact and budget analysis.
Of the project proposals received, the largest number of applications corresponded to “Community Development (particularly indigenous and rural)” followed by “Education” and “Sustainable and Agricultural Development”.
After an evaluation by the RACI team, 73 organizations were pre-selected and were required to complete the extended application form. Once the second round of project evaluations was completed, the organizations selected by the New Zealand Embassy were:
- Nenemi Paxia (Mexico): Project – “Aprendo en mi lengua. Strengthening of the educational systems that serve indigenous children in Chiapas”. Objective – Improve the education of indigenous children in Chiapas from a linguistic and cultural relevance approach.
- Asociación Red de jóvenes 2j14 (Dominican Republic): Project – “State, violence and society LGBTIQ+ version”. Objective – To train young people from the LGBTIQ+ community on the role of the State, so that they can defend their human rights.
- Asociación Para el Desarrollo Integral de Tejutepeque (El Salvador): Project – “Rural families build fair, resilient and sustainable food systems in the municipality of Tejutepeque, El Salvador”. Objective – Contribute to the sustainable rural and productive development of rural families in the municipality of Tejutepeque, El Salvador.
- Adeco, Acciones para el Desarrollo Comunitario A.C. (Mexico): Project – “Huertos vivos, hogares sanos. Strengthening food sovereignty of families in the Nahua community of Chachahuantla through the construction and implementation of backyard gardens, training in agroecology and the rescue of community food practices”. Objective – That families in the community of Chachahuantla produce food free of agro-industrial inputs for self-consumption.
- Fundación Salvador del Mundo (El Salvador): Project – “STEAM Girls”. Objective – To include and strengthen girls and young women in learning and competencies in the area of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (STEAM).
- Construyendo Esperanzas A. C. (Mexico): Project – “Capturing water and rebuilding the hope of the families of La Rabia, municipality of Mineral de Reforma, Hidalgo MX”. Objective – Increase access and availability of water to 200 thousand liters per year for 50 people in a situation of vulnerability and marginalization of La Rabia.
- Sexual Diversity Organization Amigos Siempre Amigos (Guatemala): Project – “Audiovisual production for people with visual and hearing disabilities”. Objective – To ensure that visually and hearing impaired people have access to audiovisual productions without the need for an interpreter and know their rights.
- Fundación Bioma (Mexico): Project – “Biocultural Rescue of Melipona bees in highly biodiverse coffee plantations in the Northeastern Sierra of the State of Puebla”. Objective – Improve the quality of life of indigenous Nahuatl families in the Sierra Norte de Puebla by rescuing the production of melipona bees.
We would like to congratulate the winning organizations of this edition and hope that they will be successful in implementing their projects and achieving their objectives!