Armenia is ahead of Azerbaijan and Russia in the region, but falls behind Georgia and Ukraine. The index of civil society organizations in our country is 4.0. USAID has published the 15th edition of its Civil Society Organization (CSO) Sustainability Index for Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia. Therefore, Armenian experts in this area are already drawing some conclusions. During a conversation with www.aravot.am, Tatevik Margaryan, the deputy director of the Civic Development and Partnership Foundation (CDPF), mentioned a series of problems that existed in the field of NGOs in Armenia, “NGOs have serious problems in the financial and legal fields and in terms of public perception. One of the main issues is also that the state doesn’t make orders to civil society organizations. As for financing, let me state that there are a lot of countries, where NGOs are financed by taxpayers. Admittedly, the index of stability in our country is above average, but in case of being financed from abroad, many problems arise in terms of independence and stable activities of NGOs.”
Nick Scotts, a USAID Democracy and Governance officer, noted, “The CSO sustainability index in Armenia changes year by year. During the first 10 years, the sustainability index changed positively, since 2007, the sustainability index in Armenia has not changed. Therefore, one should think why….”
Tatev HARUTYUNYAN
