UNESCO Freedom of Expression, Communication and Culture 2018-2021 - UNESCO CI IPDC Jul 2018-Dec 2021 UNESCO Yttrandefrihet, kommunikation och kultur 2018/07-2022/0621 Reprogrammed funds to address COVID-19
Extrabudgetary support to UNESCO's sections on Communication and Information, and Culture

UNESCO has applied to Sida for funding to carry out its "Freedom of Expression, Communication and Culture Programme 2018-2021". The intervention aims at contributing to fostering freedom of expression at a global, regional and local level through two of its sections; Communication & Information and Culture. 

Sida supports UNESCO's normative and operational work for freedom of expression with the overall objective to contibute to global conditions for free and independent media and cultural life including diversity of cultural expressions as well as safety for journalists. The work is both global and country specific, where global components are mainly normatively oriented while components on a country level focus on capacity building, policy development and implementation as well as create foras for dialogue between duty bearers and civil society. The programme is conducted through interplay between the global and country specific work and through synergies between the two sections' respective work, Communication & Information and Culture. In focus for the country work are countries characterized with democratic deficit, including restrictions on freedom of expression and lack of an independent media and cultural life. Gender equality is of main focus for the contribution. 

For the global normative work for freedom of expression and media development is the Communication & Information Programme (CI) contributing to the areas of saftey for journalists, freedom of expression on line and offline, media literacy as well as gender in media. At a country level, the programme contributes to country specific freedom of expression projects in Africa, MENA and Latin America within the areas of justice and advocacy work and for capacity building projects within ICT, media, gender equality and journalism, which is an important contribution for the strengthening of democratization and freedom of expression in these countries. The programme also contributes to UNESCO's IPDC - Intenational Programme for the Development of Communication's and UIS - UNESCO's Institute for Statistics' work with the development of global indicators for media and Internet. 

The Culture Programme (CLT) is strongly anchored in the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions 2005 with freedom of expression and gender equality as guiding principles. Capacity development at a country level (in 16 countries) focuses on the understanding of the Convention and methods for data collection and follow-up of the Convention, which includes monitoring freedom of expression and communication. The global normative work focuses on documentation and formulation of cultural policies, standards and legislation. Omprogrammerade medel för att bekämpa covid-19
Extrabudgetärt stöd till UNESCOs sektioner för Yttrandefrihet, kommunikation och kultur 2018-2021 utifrån UNESCO's Strategi 39 C/5 samt till Unesco Institute for Statistics. 

FN's organisation för utbildning, vetenskap och kultur - UNESCO - har genom fyra projektförslag sökt stöd från Sida för sin verksamhet när det gäller främjande av yttrandefrihet globalt, regionalt och nationellt genom två av sina verksamhetsområden; Kommunikation & Information samt Kultur. Ansökningspaketet består av två Special Accounts, dvs multigivarfonder för icke-öronmärkt flexibelt stöd till UNESCO's kärnverksamhet inom Kommunikation & Information samt två projektstöd som stöd till verksamhetsområdena kultur och statistik. Förslagen inkluderar:  
- Programdokument för "The Special Account for Freedom of Expression and the Safety of Journalists" från UNESCO's Communication & Information Sector 
- Programdokument för "The Special Account for the International Progarmme for Development of Communication" från UNESCO's Communication & Information Sector 
- Projektförslag "Reshaping Cultural Policies for the promotion of Fundamental Freedoms and the Diversity of Cultural Expressions" från UNESCO's Culture Sector 
- Projektförslag "Global Monitoring of Communication & Information"  från UNESCO's Institute for Statistics 

Sida ger stöd till UNESCO's normativa och operativa arbete för yttrandefrihet med det övergripande målet att skapa förutsättningar globalt för fri och självständig media, fritt och självständigt kulturliv, mångfald samt säkerhet för journalister. Verksamheten är både global och landspecifik, där globala komponenter i huvudsak är normativt orienterade och komponenter på landnivå fokuserar på kapacitetsutveckling, policyutveckling och implementering samt skapar arenor för dialog mellan ansvarstagare och civilsamhället. Verksamheten bedrivs genom ett sampel mellan det globala och landspecifika arbetet och genom synergier mellan de två verksamhetsområdena Kommunikation & Information samt Kultur. I fokus för verksamhet på landnivå är länder som präglas av ett demokratisk underskott, inklusive inskränkningar inom yttrandefrihet och brist på oberoende media och kulturliv. Jämställdhet är ett fokusområde för insatsen. 

När det gäller det normativa arbetet globalt för yttrandefrihet och medieutveckling bidrar Kommunikation & Information-programmet (CI) i huvudsak till områdena säkerhet för journalister, yttrandefrihet online och offline, media literacy samt jämställdhet inom media. På landnivå bidrar programmet till landspecifika yttrandefrihetsinsatser i Afrika, MENA och Latinamerika inom lagstiftnings- och påverkansarbete samt kapacitetsbyggande insatser inom ICT, media, jämställdhet och journalistik, vilket är ett viktigt bidrag till att stärka demokratisering och yttrandefrihet i dessa länder. Programmet bidrar även till UNESCO's arbete med att utveckla globala indiktorer för media och internet genom IPDC - International Programme for the Development of Communication och UNESCO Institute for Statistics - UIS. CI-programmet kommer att stödjas genom två så kallade Multi-Donor Special Accounts i linje med en programansats för Sidas samarbete med UNESCO samt genom ett projektstöd till UIS.   

Kulturprogrammet (CLT) är starkt förankrat i 2005 års UNESCO konvention för kulturell mångfald som har yttrandefrihet och jämställdhet som grundläggande principer. Kapacitetsutveckling på landnivå (16 länder) fokuserar på förståelse av konventionen och metoder för datainsamlig och uppföljning av konventionen, vilket bl a inkluderar bevakning av yttrandefrihet/kommunikation. Det globala normativa arbetet fokuserar på att dokumentera och formulera policies, standards och regleringar inom området. CLT-programmet stöds genom ett projektstöd. 

Total budget för UNESCO's verksamheter 2018-2019 är för CI 185 MSEK och för CLT Expected Result 7 133,5 MSEK. Då står Regular Programme + Voluntary contributions för respektive 30% av CI och 75% av CLT. Ett flertal givare bidrar till det extrabudgetära stödet, ca 129 MSEK för CI, varav Sida 88 MSEK respektive 33,6 MSEK för CTL, varav Sida 28 MSEK. Därutöver är de största givarna EU, Världsbanken, Norge, Finland, Nederländerna, Kamerun och Schweiz. This intervention supports UNESCO's work on freedom of expression and 2005 Convention on culture diversity through the Communication and Information (CI) sector and the Culture (CLT) sector during the period 2018-2021. The main objectives correspond to expected results in the UNESCO's Medium Term Strategy for 2014-2021 (37 C/4) and Programme and Budget for 2018-2021 (39 C/5).
The main objectives of the contribution are:
Support to Communication and Information Sector:
Outcome/expected result 1: Targeted Member States enhance legal and institutional frameworks related to the protection and promotion of freedom of expression online/offline, right of access to information and safety of journalists, in accordance with international standards (and UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity) and through integrating a gender sensitive approach.  
Outcome/expected result 2: Member States have benefited from enhanced media contributions to diversity, gender equality and youth empowerment in and through media; and societies are empowered through media and information literacy programmes and effective media response to emergency and disaster. 
Outcome/expected result 3: Media development is strengthened, and Member States have improved monitoring and reporting systems, and these results are reinforced by external grass roots projects supported by the International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC). 
Support to the Culture Sector:
Outcome/Expected result: Governments and civil society organizations engage in evidence-based and participatory policy making and monitoring processes in accordance with the principles and objectives of the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.
Support to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS):
This is considered by Sida a pilot, with the aim of strengthening UIS' role and a coordinated work between CI, IPDC and UIS to contribute to data collection and statistics for freedom of expression and SDG 16.  

The above objectives correspond directly to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and contribute in particular to SDG 16:10 and its targets 16:10:1 and 16:10:2 and also SDG 4, 5, 9, 13.
The support to the CI sector is channelled through two multi donor accounts, the Multidonor Programme for Freedom of expression and the Safety of Journalists and the Multidonor Special Account for the International Programme on Development Communication (IPDC). Key features of the programmes include support to the UN Action Plan for the Safety of Journalists and Issues of Impunity, The World Trends report on Freedom of Expression and Media Development, monitoring of SDG 16:10, Internet Universality Indicator Suite, to mention a few. Activities serve to promote the development, adoption and implementation of relevant policies and normative frameworks to strengthen the environment for freedom of expression and press freedom and to support sustainable and independent media institutions.  
Main activities to achieve the objectives of the intervention are to enhance legal and institutional frameworks, building on UNESCO's leverage to influence duty-bearers, including judges, legislature, parliamentarians, and law enforcement bodies. This is done through evidence based policy formulation and recommendations, technical expertise, capacity building and advocacy. At the same time media, journalists, artists, academia and civil society are enabled by UNESCO to take an active role in this work, by capacity building and multi-stakeholders platforms. Trainings differ for different context, but could include countering hate speech, conflict sensitive or gender sensitive reporting as well as elections covering. Activities also facilitate pluralism and participation in media, promote gender equality in both media production and content, and empower citizens with increased media and information literacy competencies. The support to the 2005 Convention supports governance and cultural policy making through capacity buidling of cultural policy makers, civil society organisations and other stakeholders. Also platforms for interaction between governments and civil society for monitoring the Convention and contributing to evidence based culture policy making. Freedom of expression is a guiding principle of the Convention and artistic freedom a monitoring pillar of the convention.
Mechanisms for UNESCO to optimize its contribution globally, in targeted countries (16 for culture and more than 80 for media) and within the UN are so called flagship reports where international standards and norms, including UN Action Plans and Conventions, are implemented and followed up, used as reference and for accountability and standard setting. These include the "World Trends Report on Freedom of Expression and Media Development" and the 2005 Convention Global Report "Re:Shaping Cultural Policies". Another activity is to contribute to community media policies and to enhance Media Literacy. Global Standard setting, developing media indicators, is also part of UNESCO’s work.
Awareness raising and networking is supported for instance by organising celebrations of international days such as World Press Freedom Day, International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists and World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development.