Pamela Valenzuela was truly a force to be reckoned with. She dedicated her life to advancing the rights of trans people in Bolivia. Her inspiring story is one of breaking barriers throughout a lifetime. She touched the hearts of members of the international LGBTIQ+ community and will be remembered for her courage by many of […]
A video message featuring LGBTQI+ activist Jairo from Guyana has won the High Flyer Award for best messaging by a development organization. The video was produced as part of the Right Here Right Now program by Rutgers, the Netherlands center of expertise on sexuality, and Hivos. Right Here Right Now supports young activists from different […]
Well-distributed blue and green dots across the Ecuadorian Amazon. That is what we saw when we looked for a map of health facilities coverage in the region. We were brainstorming on how All Eyes on the Amazon (AEA), a program that works to protect the Amazon by defending Indigenous peoples’ rights, could support a Covid-19 […]
By Sheila Mulli, Regional Program Manager – Voice Kenya & Tanzania Money is always a tough conversation to have in any relationship, whether personal or professional. In my short time as a grant maker, I’ve come to realize that money conversations will never be easy, and they definitely play a large part in the power […]
By Mendi Njonjo, Regional Director, Hivos East Africa As the rest of the world continued with information exchanges online, a wall of silence fell on citizens of Nigeria on Friday, June 4, 2021. The federal government announced a ban on Twitter, leading to a full blackout affecting millions of users that is now entering its […]
2021 marks 40 years since the first case of AIDS was reported in the world, signalling the rise of an epidemic that is not a respecter of geographic location, gender, race, ethnicity or age. In fact, low income countries have been worst hit with extreme impact on vulnerable populations such as women and the youth. […]
By Churchill Ongere, Anthony Wafula and Sally Akinyi The digital era has come of age and now influences or affects multiple aspects of our lives. Most would characterize it as an information explosion that has made knowledge – once the prestigious perk of elite groups – a widely-accessible tool for human development. News production is […]
The 10th anniversary edition of RightsCon is taking place next week. The (online) event brings together business leaders, human rights defenders, government representatives, technologists, and journalists from around the world to tackle the most pressing issues at the intersection of human rights and technology. Issues that are also high on Hivos’ change agenda. This year, Hivos […]
By Conrad Zellmann, Impact Lead for Civic Rights in a Digital Age Societies everywhere find themselves amidst a storm of challenges. Inequality and discrimination, weak defenses against corruption, and widespread disinformation undermine our ability to confront the global Covid-19 pandemic and the climate crisis. This week we celebrated Open Government Week. The values that are […]
Hivos expresses our very deep concern over the human rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel. The latest outbreak of hostilities was triggered by efforts to forcibly displace Palestinian families in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem. While Hivos does not have program and operational presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, […]
The free exchange of information, and the ability of journalists to exercise their right to freedom of expression and to find out facts, are essential in a healthy democracy. It is often their work, uncovering the truth and holding those in positions of power to account, that helps citizens make informed decisions and likewise demand […]
By Sally Akinyi and Mumbi Mugo The Covid-19 pandemic continues to have far-reaching consequences globally. Countries have been ravaged socially and economically, with public health systems on the brink of collapse and job losses rivaling the Great Depression. While governments have been swift to cushion citizens with medical responses, lockdowns and economic stimulus packages, too […]