OSCE/ODIHR workshop in Armenia highlights the importance of transparent policy-making and legislative planning
Evidence-based policy-making and legislative planning were the focus of a workshop in Tsaghkadzor, Armenia, organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), in co-operation with the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia and the OSCE Office in Yerevan on 23 and 24 February 2015.
The workshop gathered some 40 representatives from the Ministries of Justice, Finance and Economics as well as from other governmental institutions, the National Assembly, the Human Rights Defender’s Office and civil society. Participants discussed ways to improve the transparency and accessibility of the policy and legislative planning process and exchanged views on how best to involve policymakers and lawmakers, the public and relevant experts in the legislative planning framework. The workshop also focused on ways to enhance co-operation between institutions in the process of policy-making and legislative planning.
“Extensive, inclusive and transparent policy discussions at the beginning of the legislative process and good legislative planning are key to ensuring that legislation is effective and implementable,” said Alice Thomas, Chief of ODIHR’s Legislative Support Unit.
Arsen Mkrtchyan, First Deputy Minister of Justice of Armenia, said: “This workshop is very useful for us, as it provides us with the practical tools and knowledge to enhance the policy stage of the law-making process, and improve the manner in which we plan laws, overall.”
This was the first of four thematic workshops on different aspects of the law-making process in Armenia to be conducted throughout 2015, as envisaged by an agreement signed between ODIHR and the Ministry of Justice in 2014. The recommendations made in each workshop will later form part of a regulatory reform roadmap for Armenia offering concrete and specific action points for reform.