Gubad Ibadoglu: Situation with Foreign Donors in Azerbaijan Catastrophic

The situation with foreign grant donors in Azerbaijan is catastrophic, said the head of the Center for Economic Research (CER), Gubad Ibadoglu.

In an interview with Turan Ibadoglu noted that strict rules deter foreign donors.

First and foremost, foreign donors have to pass registration in Azerbaijan. No foreign donor, who before these rules worked with Azerbaijani NGOs, showed any desire to have state registration, Ibadoglu said.

He noted that against the background of the lack of foreign grants, the only source for NGOs is the Council of State Support to NGOs under the President.

The State Council gives grants twice a year. Every time 300-400 NGOs receive money for their projects, but there are a large number of NGOs, which for various reasons do not participate in it, he said.

Some NGOs do not have state registration, some others have not received an extract from the register, issued by the Ministry of Justice, and still some others’ bank accounts are under arrest.

‘There are also NGOs, which have passed registration, but never apply to the State Council, refusing to receive grants from the state, because it is fundamentally contrary to the philosophy of non-governmental organizations,’ said Ibadoglu.

Referring to the pressure wave on NGOs that lasted for the past two years, the head of CER said that although the convicted heads of NGOs were released, and the NGO accounts were freed from under arrest, this has not changed the situation. –71B--