OSCE-supported conference promotes contact between Armenian and European civil society groups

YEREVAN, 14 April 2011 – Civic participation in decision making, protecting the environment, increasing government transparency and combating corruption, and promoting free media as well as good governance were among the topics discussed at a two-day conference that started in Yerevan today.

The event is organized by the OSCE Office in Yerevan and the European Partnership for Democracy (EPD) with financial support from the National Endowment for Democracy.

“Building a strong civil society in Armenia is an indispensible part of the democratization process. It serves as an important catalyst in many fields of governance and will contribute significantly to the development of the country,” said Ambassador Sergey Kapinos, the Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan.

“By fostering contacts between Armenian non-governmental organizations and their counterparts in Central and Eastern Europe, our Office attempts to provide the groups with the opportunity to learn from each others’ experience and enhance their capacity to advocate their stated aims.”

Carlos Hernandes Ferreiro, Executive Director of European Partnership for Democracy, said: “The conference provides a valuable opportunity to address issues related to the role of civil society organizations in democratic governance. Central European organizations have recent experience of democratic transition to share, as well as a good understanding of the post-Soviet context and of the challenges intrinsic to this kind of transformation.”

With some fifty representatives from Armenian and European civil society groups, the conference seeks to facilitate a constructive exchange of views, best practices and lessons learned from Central and Eastern Europe. In three separate panels the participants discussed strengthening democratic institutions through civic participation and free media; a case study of civil society involvement in environmental protection; and strengthening good governance by increasing government transparency and combating corruption.