The Public Affairs Section (PAS) of the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe is soliciting Statements of Interest from Tajik civil society and independent media organizations that focus on one of the following priority areas: supporting independent media development and bloggers; countering violent extremism; support women’s empowerment; and promoting environmental awareness and action.

The U.S. Embassy notes that applicants should pay close attention to the Public Affairs Section’s goals, priority program areas, target audiences, and geographic locations when developing their proposals.

As far as the theme of Independent Media Development and Bloggers is concerned, the U.S. Embassy says they will support projects that raise the quality and quantity of visual content created by amateur journalists and bloggers in order to expand their audience with attractive content; increase capacity of local journalists and bloggers through training on effective use of social media and providing small grants to those who show the most potential for long-term success; and increase professionalism of social media influencers on topics of public interest and inspire them to post more on such subjects.