The EU is funding three projects to strengthen the role and participation of civil society and social partners in ensuring that current EU Generalised Scheme of Preferences+ (GSP+) beneficiary countries - Armenia, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Paraguay and the Philippines (and Georgia which recently graduated from GSP+) - effectively implement core international human rights and labour rights conventions.

The three projects are being implemented by three lead organisations, the Equal Rights Trust, Democracy Reporting International and the European Partnership for Democracy. Despite the different approaches, focuses and aims of the three, each strives to closely cooperate and join efforts where possible to avoid duplication, identify synergies and reinforce the impact of their actions.

The Equal Rights Trust

The Equal Rights Trust is an independent international organisation based in London, United Kingdom, dedicated to combating discrimination and advancing equality worldwide.

The Trust's three-year project (December 2016 – December 2019) supports and empower civil society organisations and trade unions to monitor the implementation of international human rights and labour rights conventions and advocate for effective implementation.

As an equality organisation, the Trust will focus on the rights to equality and non-discrimination under the Conventions. It focuses on the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women and the Convention on the Rights of the Child; of the 8 core International Labour Organization Conventions, it focuses on those concerning child labour, minimum age, equal remuneration and non-discrimination in the workplace.

Through consultation with key stakeholders in each country, the Trust will identify priority issues for the implementation of one or more of the Conventions which will inform the design and focus of the substantive activities of the project. These activities involve capacity-building workshops in-person and online, followed by the establishment of grant scheme to support monitoring, networking and advocacy work by national organisations, supported by a wider advocacy campaign at the national and international level for each country.