The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL) has announced an open competition for organizations interested in submitting applications for projects that support the protection of migrant domestic workers subject to the kafala system in Lebanon.

The DRL requests proposals to ensure migrant domestic workers in Lebanon benefit from rights and protections in line with international standards and are no longer subject to the kafala sponsorship system currently in place in the country.

The long-term outcomes of this initiative are that Lebanon’s labor law extends legal protections to all domestic workers, migrant and national, in line with internationally recognized labor standards; the government recognizes autonomous domestic worker organizations; the Migrant Law allows foreign workers to form unions and enjoy full membership in existing unions; and the kafala system is reformed to ensure foreign workers are no longer bound to abusive employers and are afforded freedom of movement.

Funding Information

• Funding Floor: $900,000
• Funding Ceiling: $900,000

Eligibility Criteria

• DRL welcomes applications from U.S.-based and foreign-based non-profit organizations/nongovernment organizations (NGO) and public international organizations; private, public, or state institutions of higher education; and for-profit organizations or businesses.
• DRL’s preference is to work with non-profit entities; however, there may be some occasions when a for-profit entity is best suited.

For more information, visit Grants.gov.