VERTA

People living in poverty often face discrimination based on their socio-economic status and lose the opportunity to participate in public, economic, political, and civic life. International studies highlight the hidden dimensions of poverty, one of which is the experience of powerlessness, when individuals have no influence over decisions that affect their lives. This leads to helplessness, dehumanisation, and a loss of dignity. The exclusion of people experiencing poverty from decision-making processes violates fundamental human rights and weakens democracy. Research also shows that when target groups are not included, social policy decisions become ineffective, and poverty rates remain unchanged.

For many years, one in five people in Lithuania has lived below the poverty risk threshold. NSMOT has been focusing on the issue of participation since 2018. It has been observed that there are currently no institutionally established mechanisms at the national level to ensure the inclusion of people experiencing poverty in decision-making processes. To guarantee the civil and political rights of people in poverty, structural changes are needed to ensure their systematic, sustainable, and effective participation at the national level.

The main goal of this project is to ensure the systematic, sustainable and effective inclusion of people experiencing poverty in decision-making processes by affirming their political and civil rights. To achieve this, NSMOT will bring together people experiencing poverty, NGOs, researchers, and representatives of state institutions. It will also rely on international best practices and develop a model for systemic inclusion of people experiencing poverty in decision-making.

NSMOT will advocate for the institutionalisation of this model. The model will define guidelines for the systemic, sustainable, and effective inclusion of people in poverty in decision-making processes. NSMOT will also implement an awareness-raising campaign to draw attention to the described challenges and strengthen public support for change in this area. The organisation aims to make the participation of people experiencing poverty in decision-making a standard practice in Lithuania, ensuring their civil and political rights and contributing to poverty reduction efforts.

Project objectives:

1. To mobilise experts, researchers, representatives of national and regional NGOs, state institutions, and people experiencing poverty to foster knowledge exchange and collaboration in strengthening the inclusion of vulnerable groups in decision-making.

2. To develop a national model for the systemic inclusion of people experiencing poverty in decision-making processes in Lithuania and advocate for policy changes based on the model's guidelines.

3. To raise public awareness about the challenges in ensuring the political and civil rights of people experiencing poverty and to strengthen public support for policy changes aimed at securing these rights.

Project start: 1 October 2024; End: 31 August 2025.

Geographic scope: the project targets Lithuania at the national level.

It seeks to achieve structural change through national-scale activities. Project partners who will engage people experiencing poverty operate in various regions, including Klaipėda, Šiauliai, Telšiai, Tauragė, and Vilkaviškis.

Knowledge gained through project training will be applied in these local communities. Interinstitutional working group meetings will take place in Vilnius, Kaunas, and online. The international conference will be held in Vilnius.

Project budget: €59,994.79.

Project Number: K4-ADV-I-PD-004

Funded by the European Union.

Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.

Project coordinator - VšĮ Atviros Lietuvos fondas.

Project partners:

• Vilkaviškio rajono kaimo bendruomenių sąjunga

• Žmogiškųjų išteklių stebėsenos ir plėtros biuras

• VšĮ „Žmogaus socialinės integracijos centras“

• Klaipėdos Marijos Taikos Karalienės parapijos Caritas

• Maltos ordino pagalbos tarnyba