KYRGYZSTAN TODAY Policy briefs on - Department of Geography
KYRGYZSTAN TODAY Policy briefs on - Department of Geography
KYRGYZSTAN TODAY Policy briefs on - Department of Geography
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state policy <strong>on</strong> cooperati<strong>on</strong> with NGOs, which would provide them with essential<br />
principles <strong>of</strong> how to work with them. Put differently, there are no basic rules to which<br />
the government instituti<strong>on</strong>s regardless <strong>of</strong> the area and scale <strong>of</strong> their activities can refer<br />
when working with NGOs.<br />
Furthermore, a detailed investigati<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> available legal documents <strong>on</strong> the<br />
government-NGO relati<strong>on</strong>ship has suggested that a lack <strong>of</strong> a state policy <strong>on</strong> NGO<br />
relati<strong>on</strong>s is half <strong>of</strong> the problem. It was discovered that the government has already<br />
attempted to create a state programme <strong>on</strong> NGO support. However, this initiative failed<br />
since the government had a poor commitment to and c<strong>on</strong>trol over the implementati<strong>on</strong><br />
<strong>of</strong> the initiative. Therefore, it was c<strong>on</strong>cluded that, in additi<strong>on</strong> to a bare initiative, the<br />
government should have increased resp<strong>on</strong>sibility for its implementati<strong>on</strong> accompanied<br />
by regular m<strong>on</strong>itoring.<br />
To sum up, there are two interc<strong>on</strong>nected problems, that the government and its<br />
instituti<strong>on</strong>s face in all areas and at all levels. They need a comm<strong>on</strong> state policy <strong>on</strong><br />
working with NGOs, which would <strong>of</strong>fer them the basic rules <strong>of</strong> working with NGOs.<br />
Furthermore, the central government needs proper mechanisms to implement its<br />
policies and programmes <strong>on</strong> NGO relati<strong>on</strong>s. With reference to this, this policy brief<br />
suggests creating a State <strong>Department</strong> <strong>on</strong> NGO Relati<strong>on</strong>s. Its key resp<strong>on</strong>sibility would<br />
be to coordinate the development and implementati<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> the legal documents <strong>on</strong><br />
the government-NGO relati<strong>on</strong>ship such as c<strong>on</strong>cepts, decrees, programmes, policies,<br />
and laws. In this way, the <strong>Department</strong> would ensure that a proper legal basis for the<br />
government-NGOs relati<strong>on</strong>ship is in place and implemented accordingly. It would also<br />
provide the various government instituti<strong>on</strong>s at all levels with informati<strong>on</strong> about and<br />
advice <strong>on</strong> the legal documents <strong>on</strong> NGO relati<strong>on</strong>s.<br />
In additi<strong>on</strong> to these main functi<strong>on</strong>s, to c<strong>on</strong>tribute to the development <strong>of</strong> a more<br />
effective relati<strong>on</strong>ship between the government and NGOs, the State <strong>Department</strong> <strong>on</strong> NGO<br />
Relati<strong>on</strong>s would fulfill two additi<strong>on</strong>al tasks: a) disseminating informati<strong>on</strong> about the legal<br />
documents <strong>on</strong> the government-NGO relati<strong>on</strong>ship to NGOs through representatives <strong>of</strong><br />
the NGO sector to ensure that they are also aware <strong>of</strong> them and can refer to them when<br />
working with government instituti<strong>on</strong>s; and b) providing all government instituti<strong>on</strong>s<br />
with informati<strong>on</strong> about NGOs through maintaining an NGO database to increase their<br />
awareness <strong>of</strong> NGOs and their activities.<br />
Problem Statement: Government-NGO Relati<strong>on</strong>ship in Kyrgyzstan<br />
It is true that Kyrgyzstan has the most advanced relati<strong>on</strong>ship between a government<br />
and the NGO sector in Central Asia. The Kyrgyz government has created c<strong>on</strong>diti<strong>on</strong>s<br />
quite c<strong>on</strong>ducive to the emergence and development <strong>of</strong> NGOs: NGOs can easily register<br />
and carry out their activities. Furthermore, the government and its instituti<strong>on</strong>s have<br />
been working with NGOs over the last decade. There have been successful cases <strong>of</strong><br />
government-NGO collaborati<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> various issues (gender, poverty, envir<strong>on</strong>ment, and<br />
others) and at all levels (nati<strong>on</strong>al, regi<strong>on</strong>al, and local) (Berk et al 2007).<br />
However, the number <strong>of</strong> these cases is limited and dispersed all over the country.<br />
Research has revealed that the reas<strong>on</strong> for this is that the government lacks an integrated<br />
policy for working with NGOs. According to the research, most collaborati<strong>on</strong> between<br />
government instituti<strong>on</strong>s and the NGO sector, regardless <strong>of</strong> the area and scale <strong>of</strong> their<br />
activities, takes place within projects funded by d<strong>on</strong>ors. Since d<strong>on</strong>ors prefer to fund <strong>on</strong>e<strong>of</strong>f<br />
and short-term projects, the government-NGO relati<strong>on</strong>ship tends to be temporary<br />
and unsustainable. In fairness to the d<strong>on</strong>ors, it should be pointed out that, by requiring<br />
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