Country-specific work

In-country activities respond to the needs of organisations or movements that we cannot address through regional events. ILGA-Europe carries out in-country work by supporting particular advocacy and organisational processes in our member organisations – to prepare them to work towards social and legal change for LGBTI people in the best way possible.

Urgency, complexity and composition of the movement – all of these factors affect the character of ILGA-Europe’s in-country activities. They can range from one-off interventions to more complex processes, implemented in the medium to long term.

Some country-specific activities follow up on our regional capacity building work. Some activities are inspired by our movement building or advocacy work. ILGA-Europe’s ability to provide in-country support always depends on our own capacity and available funding available. Where the needs of many countries overlap, we will always refer back to our strategic plan to help us prioritise.

Historically, ILGA-Europe focused on developing legislative standards at European level. In recent years, our focus has shifted and now we are engaging in more and more in-country activity. European legislation means nothing if its spirit is not enforced. We are working with our members to promote and implement EU laws - so LGBTI people can actually benefit from their provisions.

As part of our movement building work, we can offer tailor-made supports to our members. This can include coaching, planning sessions and other thematic themed trainings to answer a specific question that they have. This form of support can only be given after extensive needs assessments have been carried out, which can include in-country visits as well as distance needs assessments.

This helps ILGA-Europe to assess our community’s broad needs. It  can be especially useful when we are learning about the requirements of our newer member organisations. Needs assessments also identify situations where in-country support is urgently needed.

Our Creating Opportunities programme is another vital support for our members. Through this programme, ILGA-Europe support mobilisation and campaigning activities at national level.