In addition to these four key strategies, the Red Umbrella Fund is committed to participatory governance where a majority of the people involved in our governance and grantmaking structures will always be sex workers. Read more about our work in in our Annual Overview. Our funding is all for sex worker-led groups and networks engaged in rights based work.
We do not tell grantees what they should spend their money on, or the kind of work they should be doing to improve the rights of sex workers. We provide core funding that is flexible to the needs of each group. This can be used for any kind of expense β for example: rent, salaries, training, capacity building, registration, networking activities or organisational development.
Although all our initial grants were for one year only, we are working towards multi-year grants during this strategic planning period to support sustainability. Few donors are supporting sex worker-led groups and networks to develop their own organisational capacity, particularly within a human rights framework.
In line with our commitment to a sex worker-led, participatory approach, our focus is on developing peer-led capacity building, including the use of community consultants. This values the existing skills within the movement and enables sex worker-led organisations and networks to share and benefit from the expertise of their peers. Our core funding grants can include costs for capacity building and technical assistance as identified by grantees as their priority. The Secretariat of the Red Umbrella Fund also provides technical support to grantees, if needed, on preparing for, managing and reporting on their grant.
We actively promote the existence and purpose of the Red Umbrella Fund. We want sex worker-led organisations and networks across the world to know about our distinctive approach to funding and to be encouraged to apply. We want to see sex worker-led organisations being given greater priority by donors and a human rights approach in all funding for sex workers.
