In order to enhance the cultural role of Jerusalem and support Jerusalem-based cultural organisations, the NDC provided grants to partner NGOs in the “Core Funding to East Jerusalem Based Cultural Organisations” project. These grants aimed to establish a network of cultural civil society organisations in Jerusalem; the Jerusalem Arts Network (Shafaq). With the view of facilitating the achievement of the strategic objectives of the partner NGOs, the project provides long-term core programme support extending over a four year period.
Within the framework of this project, the NDC aims to support the resilience of Palestinian communities in East Jerusalem through the enhancement of cultural rights, coordination and networking between the East Jerusalem- based CSOs working in the cultural field and empowerment of these CSOs to serve their programme beneficiaries. The project also provides technical assistance to build the capacities of the partner organisations, as well as assess the effectiveness of the Jerusalem Arts Network (Shafaq) and design a capacity development plan for the network.
The beneficiaries of this SEK 42 million (equivalent of USD 4.54 million) project funded by Sweden, are five cultural organisations in Jerusalem. These organisations are the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music, the Palestinian National Theatre (El-Hakawati), Yabous Cultural Center, Al-Ma’mal Foundation for Contemporary Art and the Palestinian Art Court (Al Hoash).