About us

Fondo de Mujeres del Sur (FMS) is a foundation that mobilises resources and provides financial, technical and political support to organisations that promote the rights of diverse women, identities and sexualities in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay. Since 2017, it has also coordinated a regional programme –Leading from the South– in Latin America and the Caribbean.

FMS was founded on October 12th, 2007 by six renowned feminists, as part of the regional and international struggle of the women movement, which had already seen other women funds being established in various parts of the world.

At FMS, we support grassroots initiatives, organisations and networks of diverse women, identities and sexualities who work to achieve transformative results towards gender, ethnic-racial and social justice. Our goal is to strengthen women, feminist and LGBTIQ+ movements, from a human rights, democratic, intersectional, southern, enjoyable and joyful approach.

Priorities

• Political participation and feminist activisms
• Economic justice
• Eradication of violences and discriminations
• Socio-environmental and urban justice

Mission

FMS mobilises resources and provides financial, technical and political support to strengthen organisations of diverse women, identities and sexualities, and feminist movements that promote gender, ethnic-racial and social justice.

Vision

FMS envisions a world in which diverse women, identities and sexualities enjoy the full exercise of their human rights, where they can defend their rights and achieve their well-being, free from violences and discriminations.

Fundraising:

FMS mobilises local and international funds and develops resources from bilateral and multilateral international cooperation and from individual and institutional donors. FMS also implements a variety of fundraising strategies at the local level.

Grantmaking and Providing Support:

FMS provides financial and technical support to groups and organisations of diverse women, identities and sexualities (grantees) located in socioeconomically marginalised areas. Funding allocation to grantees is made within the framework of various strategic programmes and through special grants, which contribute both to strengthening organisational development and implementing specific projects. FMS grants aim to economically and politically empower grantees and movements, and are based on the principles of autonomy, flexibility and sustainability. The grantees themselves, the diverse women, identities and sexualities that make up and lead each organisation, manage the money according to their own priorities and strategic interests.

Capacity Building

FMS promotes strengthening the organisational and advocacy capacities of its grantees, through face-to-face or virtual meetings and training workshops with the groups and organisations supported by FMS as well as with other diverse women, identities and sexualities, activists and defenders. The FMS team also makes periodic learning and monitoring visits to grantee organisations, to exchange experiences and jointly evaluate the progress of projects and strategies for their effective implementation.

Connection and Network Building:

FMS fosters networks and alliances to increase opportunities for impact, developing partnership and communication strategies between people and organisations that defend the rights of diverse women, identities and sexualities located in various geographic areas, in order to enhance opportunities, advance the influence of the work carried out by the organisations and activists, and promote the expansion of their real impact.

Fostering Participation:

FMS supports diverse women, identities and sexualities to amplify their voices and demands, implementing strategies that aim to promote advocacy, political participation and proposal development for more inclusive, fair and egalitarian public policies.

Movement Strengthening:

FMS supports collective actions to strengthen women's and feminist movements in the countries where it operates as well as their intersection with other social movements.