At a time when local journalism in Palestine has been decimated — at least 117 journalists and media professionals have been killed in the war in Gaza since October — the need to protect public interest journalism has never been more acute. In addition, with dozens of journalists injured and many media outlets facing imminent closure, the fund provides a vital lifeline for the media ecosystem in Palestine — and the public that relies upon it for quality, local reporting.

Funded by the International Fund for Public Interest Media (IFPIM), the IFJ, in partnership with the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS) and the Palestinian Media Sector Coordination Group (PMSCG), will provide up to 20 individual grants to local media entities. Available to a diverse range of private local and national outlets, these grants will help to pay the salaries of journalists, and sustain and promote the production of public interest reporting.

Grant recipients will be selected through a rigorous, transparent, and criteria-based process. Funding will be allocated to media organisations that demonstrate a clear commitment to transparency, ethical journalism, legal compliance, and which provide fair working conditions for their staff. All applicants will undergo exhaustive due diligence checks before grant transfers are finalised .

The project will also provide support to the PMSCG and its efforts to develop a long-term development strategy for the Palestinian media sector. This support will contribute towards the establishment of an independent media fund, which will be managed by the media sector representative groups and other entities working to advance the media ecosystem in Palestine.

“Nowhere is the urgency to save journalism from extinction more pronounced than in Palestine,” said IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger. “The professional and humanitarian costs to journalists on the ground and the long-term societal implications of the potential loss of local, public interest reporting are enormous. Covering the crisis in Gaza has come at a terrible cost. Many journalists have lost their lives, lost their jobs or face an increasingly perilous and untenable financial situation.

By providing critical financial support to independent media organisations, we seek to sustain and expand their public interest content. We are endeavouring to help them survive and to ensure journalists — many of whom have not been paid for months — can earn a living and fulfil their mission to educate and inform.”

Welcoming the launch of the new fund for media in Palestine, IFPIM CEO, Nishant Lalwani, emphasised, “A fundamental part of IFPIM’s mission is to sustain independent media around the world, particularly where it is most crucial for promoting  accountability. With the crisis continuing unabated, the need for financial support for independent journalism in Palestine is both urgent and profoundly important. We are pleased to partner with the IFJ to ensure that Palestinians and the world can continue to stay informed from local media outlets, whose reporters are working in grave conditions to provide on-the-ground coverage and analysis. Most importantly, we want to be part of the solution that protects a durable public interest media ecosystem in the future and contributes to long-term peace and stability.”

The application form and guidance will be available from 10am CET on Thursday 1 August on the IFJ web site and through IFJ social media (X, Facebook, Instagram, linkedin)

For more information contact:

About the IFJ

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is the world's largest organisation of journalists, representing 600,000 media professionals from 180 national trade unions and associations in more than 140 countries. Established in 1926, the IFJ speaks for journalists within the United Nations system and within the international trade union movement. It defends social justice, equal treatment and fair working conditions for all media workers. It stands for strong independent media, pluralism and ethical journalism. The Federation has established an International Safety Fund to provide humanitarian aid for journalists in need.
Its motto is “There can be no press freedom if journalists exist in conditions of corruption, poverty or fear”.

Contact: [email protected]

About IFPIM 

Launched in 2021, the International Fund for Public Interest Media (IFPIM) is a bold multilateral initiative designed to support independent public interest media in low- and middle-income settings. IFPIM’s mission is to ensure that people worldwide live in healthy information ecosystems, with access to journalism that upholds the public interest. To achieve this vision, the Fund aims to increase the financial resources available to support trustworthy, ethical, fact-based journalism, and to empower a resilient and independent media ecosystem that can protect democracy. In addition, the International Fund’s mission is to foster a paradigm shift in how public interest media is resourced, with the goal of ensuring it is independent, inclusive and resilient. IFPIM supports media organisations and ecosystem-level interventions across four focus regions: Africa and the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Eastern Europe. To date, IFPIM has made 50 grants valued at USD $15m to media organisations in 23 geographies.

Further details on the Fund can be found at ifpim.org.

Project's Contacts:

Monir Zaarour, IFJ Director of Policy and Programmes - Arab World and Middle East: [email protected]

Shuruq Asad, project manager: [email protected]