Civic Space / Sivil Alan

What Civic Space / Sivil Alan does

Civic Space (Sivil Alan) is a European Union-funded civil-society support project operating in Northern Cyprus, implemented by a consortium led by GFA Consulting Group with B&S Europe S.A. (a subsidiary of GOPA Consulting Group) acting as primary implementing partner and data controller. Founded in 2016 under the EU Aid Programme for the Turkish Cypriot community, it currently runs on a €3,499,550 budget for the 2023–2025 phase and operates from a headquarters at Köşklüçiftlik, Nicosia (Lefkoşa), with a staff of seven. Its core mission is to strengthen civil-society organisations (CSOs) and activists in the Turkish Cypriot community through grants, capacity-building, mentorship, networking, and bicommunal bridge-building with Greek Cypriot counterparts.

The core service offering is the Sivil Büyü (Grow Civic) Support Programme — an in-kind grant and capacity-strengthening mechanism delivered through an online Management Information System (MIS) and front-line Help Desk. It is complemented by a six-month Mentor Programme (16 CSOs mentored through 2025, 20 trained mentors), the Değişim İnisiyatifi (Exchange Initiative) for inter-communal partnerships, an STÖ Veri Tabanı (CSO database), a Sivil Alan Kütüphanesi (Library) of published guidelines (Gender, Ecology, Rights-Based Approach, Mentoring), a reservable meeting room, and the annual CiviCon conference (150+ participants in 2025). The product surface is service- and convening-led rather than technology-led; the only proprietary technology assets are the MIS portal (mis.civicspace.eu) and the CSO database, both internally facing.

The business model is 100% grant-funded development assistance from the EU Aid Programme, with no commercial pricing, no fees to beneficiaries, and no revenue diversification. Civic Space is therefore a non-profit technical assistance project, not a commercial enterprise — its 'customers' are Turkish Cypriot CSOs and activists, and its sole 'payer' is the European Union via EUPSO/EUCC oversight. GTM motion is community-led and event-driven: district info sessions, workshops, networking events, CiviCon, the Help Desk, and word-of-mouth within the tightly knit CSO network.

Name

Civic Space / Sivil Alan

Legal name

B&S Europe S.A.

Website

https://civicspace.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Civic Space (Sivil Alan) is an EU Aid Programme-funded civil-society support project for Turkish Cypriot CSOs and activists, delivered via grants, mentoring, training, and bicommunal convening from its Nicosia headquarters under a GFA Consulting Group-led consortium.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Society Support Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Civil Society Strengthening & Civic Space (BPADAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Governance, Democracy & Rule of Law (BPAGABAI), Digital Inclusion & Civic Tech (Connectivity, GovTech for Social Good) (BPAGALAK), Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy (BPAGAFAJ)

Keywords

• Civil society support
• Capacity building
• Grant management
• CSO mentoring
• Community development

Headquarters

HQ city

Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. EU Aid Programme Funding: Civic Space is entirely funded by the European Union's Aid Programme for the Turkish Cypriot community. The total project budget is 3,499,550 Euro. The Grow Civic in-kind support programme (a sub-component) provides capacity-building support, grants, and services to CSOs at no cost to beneficiaries. The project does not generate commercial revenue.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

Civic Space operates a multi-module civil society support ecosystem in Northern Cyprus, providing in-kind grants, mentoring, training, and resources to civil society organisations (CSOs) and activists through the Sivil Büyü (Grow Civic) Support Programme and complementary services. All offerings are provided free of charge to beneficiaries and funded entirely by the European Union's Aid Programme for the Turkish Cypriot community.

Product overview

Civic Space / Sivil Alan is an EU-funded technical assistance project implemented by a GFA Consulting Group-led consortium (with B&S Europe as data controller) that operates as a multi-module civil society support ecosystem in Cyprus. The core offering is the Sivil Büyü (Grow Civic) Support Programme — a €3,499,550 grant and in-kind support mechanism — complemented by a Mentoring Programme, Help Desk, Exchange Initiative (inter-communal partnerships), CSO Database, Civic Space Library, and Meeting Room Booking. Supporting publications and tools include the Mentörlük Rehberi (Mentoring Guide) and the Ana Akımlaştırma Kılavuzları (Mainstreaming Guidelines) covering rights-based approach, gender, ecology, and accessibility. CiviCon is the annual conference platform for convening the civil society community. The Bilgi Yönetim Sistemi (MIS) is an internal portal for managing support requests.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Sivil Büyü (Grow Civic): Support programme providing funding, mentoring, and capacity strengthening for civil society organizations
• CiviCon
• Mentor Programı
• Destek Masası (Help Desk)
• STÖ Veritabanı (CSO Database)

Products and services

• Sivil Büyü Destek Programı (Grow Civic Support Programme) An EU-funded grant and in-kind support programme for civil society organisations and activists in Northern Cyprus, providing financial and technical support for rights-based initiatives across multiple phases since 2016.
• Mentor Programı (Mentoring Programme) A peer-learning and mentorship programme matching CSOs with experienced civil society activists as mentors in structured six-month cycles covering strategic planning, fundraising, communication, and advocacy.
• Destek Masası (Help Desk)

Quantifiable outcome

• 116 civil society works supported with €320,000 in-kind grants (2016–2023)
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered secondary / supporting and primary / core.

• European Union Programme Support Office (EUPSO)secondary / supportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 June 2024EUPSO Bölüm Başkanı Michel Vedrenne participated in the June 2024 networking event at Bedesten, demonstrating EUPSO's role in supporting and co-hosting Civic Space activities. EUPSO represents the European Union in programme oversight for civil society development in Northern Cyprus.
• EU Coordination Centre (EUCC)secondary / supportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 June 2024EUCC Başkanı Selçuk Yürükoğulları spoke at the June 2024 Bedesten networking event. EUCC serves as a coordination body between EU programmes and Turkish Cypriot civil society, complementing EUPSO's role.
• Cypriot Turkish NGO Mentors (Mentor Pool)secondary / supportingOthers · 1 January 2019Civic Space trained 30 NGO representatives as mentors (2019), including 5 from Cypriot Greek NGOs, 5 from intercommunal NGOs, and 20 from Turkish Cypriot NGOs. These mentors volunteer 8–10 hours per month to support mentee CSOs. The mentor pool is a critical implementation partner for the Mentoring Programme.
• GFA Consulting Groupprimary / coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGFA Consulting Group leads the consortium that implements the Civic Space project. GFA is one of Europe's leading private and independent consulting groups in development cooperation, responsible for overall project management, quality assurance, and strategic oversight. The consortium is referenced on the website footer as the implementing body.
• B&S Europe S.A.primary / coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerB&S Europe S.A. (part of GOPA Consulting Group) is the data controller for personal data processed through the Grow Civic programme and MIS portal. GOPA Consulting Group is described as one of Europe's leading private and independent consulting groups in development cooperation, serving national ministries and supranational institutions such as the European Commission and World Bank.
• Infakto Research Workshopsecondary / supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerCivic Space partnered with Infakto Research Workshop to conduct the Northern Part of Cyprus Youth Survey (March 2024), which involved face-to-face interviews with 752 young people aged 15–24 across six districts. Infakto provided research design, data collection methodology, and analytical expertise.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Hivos: International development organization supporting civil society, human rights, and civic innovation globally. Comparable to Civic Space in its rights-based approach to civil society support, though Hivos operates across many countries with a much larger budget.
• European Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ECNL): European hub for civil society law and policy reform supporting CSO enabling environments. Comparable to Civic Space's rights-based approach and civic space strengthening work, though focused on legal and regulatory frameworks rather than direct CSO grants.
• NDI (National Democratic Institute): International NGO supporting democratic institutions and civil society worldwide. Comparable to Civic Space's civil society strengthening and democracy support mission, though operating at a much larger global scale across many countries.
• CIVICUS: Global civil society alliance and advocacy network that strengthens civic space worldwide. Comparable to Civic Space as a civil society strengthening and civic space monitoring organization, though operating at a much larger global scale rather than a single territory.

Others

• GOPA Consulting Group: Parent group of B&S Europe S.A., the data controller and implementing partner for Civic Space. Comparable as a parent organization managing EU-funded civil society and development cooperation projects across multiple geographies.
• GFA Consulting Group: Lead consortium partner implementing the Civic Space project. As one of Europe's leading development consulting firms, GFA is structurally comparable as the operational backbone of Civic Space and implements similar EU-funded civil society programmes in other regions.

Direct peers

• European Endowment for Democracy (EED): Independent EU-funded body supporting civil society, pro-democracy movements, and independent media in the European neighbourhood. Closely comparable to Civic Space as a donor-funded mechanism supporting civil society and democratic resilience in contested contexts.
• Cypriot Civil Society in Action (EU Programme): EU-funded grant programme specifically supporting bicommunal civil society projects in Cyprus. Directly comparable to Civic Space's Grow Civic programme and Exchange Initiative, though specifically focused on bicommunal grants rather than capacity building.
• TACSO (Technical Assistance for Civil Society Organisations): EU-funded technical assistance project supporting civil society organizations in the Western Balkans and Turkey. Highly comparable to Civic Space as a donor-funded civil society support mechanism with grant, training, and mentoring programmes for local CSOs.
• Civil Society Development Centre Association (STGM): Turkey-based civil society support organization that provides capacity building, training, and advocacy support to Turkish CSOs. Directly comparable in mission and methodology to Civic Space's support of Turkish Cypriot CSOs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/civicspaceeu
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/civicspaceeu
• Facebookfacebook.com/civicspaceeu
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/civicspaceeu
• Instagraminstagram.com/civicspaceeu

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Civic Space / Sivil Alan