Population

Women & Girls, 2013

Human rights funding for women and girls, including transgender people, protects and promotes their equal rights as described in the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women. This funding supports efforts to ensure gender equality, including in owning property, holding elected office, and earning fair wages, and addresses abuses like gender-based violence, sexual assault, and female genital mutilation. It promotes women’s reproductive rights.

21%
Share of foundation
human rights funding

$498.0 Million out of
$2.3 Billion for all rights
5,328 Grants

Top Foundation Funders

  1. The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation $115.3 M
  2. Ford Foundation $62.9 M
  3. Open Society Foundations $28.6 M
  4. The Oak Foundation $20.8 M
  5. Comic Relief UK $17.3 M
  6. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation $16.1 M
  7. American Jewish World Service $14.6 M
  8. UN Women's Fund for Gender Equality $13.0 M
  9. NoVo Foundation $12.4 M
  10. The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation $12.0 M
  11. Hivos $11.1 M
  12. National Endowment for Democracy $9.6 M
  13. The David and Lucile Packard Foundation $7.9 M
  14. Nationale Postcode Loterij $7.0 M
  15. The Global Fund for Women $7.0 M
  16. EEA and Norway Grants $5.9 M
  17. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation $5.8 M
  18. Foundation for a Just Society $5.5 M
  19. Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program $5.3 M
  20. Foundation For The Carolinas $4.8 M
  21. Tides Foundation $4.6 M
  22. Mama Cash $4.6 M
  23. The Sigrid Rausing Trust $4.4 M
  24. HJW Foundation $3.7 M
  25. The International Development Research Centre $3.4 M
  26. M = Millions

Bilateral and Multilateral Funding

24%
Share of OECD
human rights funding

$893.0 Million out of
$3.7 Billion for all rights
3,323 Disbursements

Top Funders

  1. Norway $124.5 M
  2. Global Fund $90.5 M
  3. Canada $81.9 M
  4. Sweden $80.6 M
  5. Netherlands $68.1 M
  6. United Kingdom $64.9 M
  7. Spain $61.5 M
  8. European Union Institutions $54.9 M
  9. United States $43.8 M
  10. Finland $43.4 M
  11. Australia $40.3 M
  12. Germany $37.2 M
  13. Denmark $18.9 M
  14. Switzerland $14.7 M
  15. Ireland $14.6 M
  16. Belgium $13.0 M
  17. Korea $9.6 M
  18. United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) $7.7 M
  19. Italy $6.5 M
  20. Austria $5.7 M
  21. Iceland $1.9 M
  22. United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (UNPBF) $1.7 M
  23. International Development Association $1.6 M
  24. Japan $1.6 M
  25. Luxembourg $1.0 M
  26. M = Millions

Key Findings:
2013 Funding

Key Findings

Foundation Funding by Region

Asia & Pacific

$48,849,785 (10%)
862 Grants (16%)

Caribbean

$3,708,988 (1%)
89 Grants (2%)

Eastern Europe, Central Asia, & Russia

$16,825,973 (3%)
385 Grants (7%)

Global Programs

$78,526,747 (16%)
291 Grants (5%)

Latin America & Mexico

$55,881,830 (11%)
979 Grants (18%)

Middle East & North Africa

$18,484,879 (4%)
268 Grants (5%)

North America

$173,601,738 (35%)
1,146 Grants (22%)

Sub-Saharan Africa

$100,910,976 (20%)
1,171 Grants (22%)

Western Europe

$21,770,414 (4%)
249 Grants (5%)

Region totals include both foundation grants directly to recipients based in the region specified and foundation grants to recipients located in other regions to do work benefiting the region specified. Grants may mention more than one region of benefit and therefore be counted in more than one category.

Foundation Funding by Issue

Issue totals include foundation funding that could be identified as meant to address a specific issue. In order to provide unique totals and avoid double-counting, each foundation grant has been assigned to exactly one issue category within the human rights taxonomy.

Foundation Funding by Intersecting Populations

In order to show the intersections of multiple population groups, these graphics indicate other population groups supported within funding towards the group highlighted on this page.

Foundation Funding by Strategy

Strategy totals include foundation funding that could be identified as supporting a specific strategy. Grants may employ multiple strategies and would therefore be counted in more than one category.

Sample Grants

  • Hivos
    Cita Tenun Indonesia (Indonesia)
    To promote female entrepreneurship and sustainable consumption and production of hand-woven textiles in Indonesia and the Phillippines.
  • Ford Foundation
    Center for Reproductive Rights (United States)
    To use the law to advance reproductive freedom as a fundamental human right that all governments are obligated to protect respect and fulfill.