Annual Plan Narrative 2025-2026

Democracy and civic freedoms face escalating threats worldwide as authoritarian regimes consolidate power, and many democratically elected leaders deliberately undermine democratic institutions. This creates an increasingly hostile environment for civil society across all settings, from authoritarian states to established democracies.

The space for citizen action is narrowing through multiple, converging threats. Authorities normalise protest suppression through excessive force, mass arrests and restrictive legislation designed to silence dissent. Those mobilising for democracy, women’s rights, LGBTQI+ rights, labour rights, climate justice, environmental protection and Indigenous peoples’ rights face intensifying crackdowns. Civil society organisations contend with systematic legal harassment through deceptively named ‘anti-money laundering’ and ‘foreign agent’ laws deliberately crafted to control, silence and repress critical voices under the guise of regulation.

Democratic backsliding is exacerbated by rising militarisation, with increased defence spending and weapons proliferation weakening rules-based global governance. The resulting conflicts have devastating humanitarian consequences that further threaten decades of human rights gains.

Simultaneously, digital spaces – once promising expanded civic engagement – now present new barriers. Troubling alignments between technology companies and political powers constrict these virtual forums. Targeted disinformation campaigns undermine public trust in democratic institutions and civil society.

The political motives behind these challenges are increasingly evident in funding environments. Politically motivated cuts and constraints are creating financial sustainability challenges for civil society precisely when our action is most needed. CIVICUS and our members are also affected.

This Annual Plan responds decisively to these converging threats. We will strengthen solidarity mechanisms among civil society groups and activists while developing innovative approaches to resource mobilisation. Our strategies will balance addressing immediate crises with building long-term resilience. As the resurgence of authoritarian and anti-rights forces creates more challenging environments, we remain committed to supporting the vital civil society and people’s resistance movements emerging in response.

We will conduct a thorough review to assess progress, identify necessary course corrections and ensure our work effectively supports groups affected by both civic space restrictions and structural discrimination. In line with our learning and accountability commitments, we have chosen proxy indicators per strategic objective based on what we can consistently report year on year. Previous years’ actuals can be found here, with additional indicators to be included based on annual focus and data availability.