Archive of International Institutions

Information about the project

Brief information about the project "Working Group of Civil Society Organizations on Sustainable Development in Central Asia", launched by the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights According to the Freedom Index of the well-known human rights organization Freedom House, all five Central Asian states fall into the category of unfree countries with consolidated authoritarian regimes. The States of the former Soviet region (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan) have followed different paths since gaining independence in 1991, but all of them experience systematic human rights violations and harassment of human rights defenders. Political rights and civil liberties, including the right to freedom of speech, assembly and association, are suppressed to varying degrees in all countries of the region. Corruption, arbitrary arrests and ill-treatment in places of detention are common in all five States. It is extremely difficult for human rights defenders and independent civil society organizations to work in Central Asia. No independent human rights organizations exist in Turkmenistan, a small number in Uzbekistan, and such organizations are under increasing pressure in Tajikistan. Although the activities of independent human rights defenders and civil society organizations (CSOs) are allowed in principle without restrictions in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, they remain subject to arbitrary interference and politically motivated accusations, as well as stigmatization as so-called "foreign agents", "foreign representatives" or organizations and individuals receiving foreign funding. In this difficult environment for civil society, including human rights and other organizations and civil society activists, the ineffectiveness of traditional international human rights mechanisms is obvious. For many years, UN human rights bodies and agencies have sent critical concluding observations and reports of UN Special Procedures to the countries of Central Asia based on the results of missions to the states of the region on violations in their fulfillment of international obligations under ratified international human rights treaties, but their recommendations have not been implemented, especially with regard to respect for political rights and civil liberties. The UN treaty bodies have issued more than 150 decisions (considerations, opinions) on individual complaints against the Central Asian states (more than 70 in Kazakhstan), but they are practically not being implemented, both in terms of restoring violated rights and paying compensation, not to mention systemic changes. The OSCE constantly sends election observation missions to Central Asian countries that do not recognize them as meeting the standards of free and fair elections, but nothing much changes. The space for civil society in the countries of the region is constantly shrinking, and the pressure on independent civil rights organizations and civil society activists, human rights defenders and journalists is constantly growing. This has led to the need to find other means of protection and influence not through traditional international human rights mechanisms, but through organizations and institutions that are not directly related to the protection of human rights, but in recent years have increasingly turned their attention to the space of civil society and human rights in the field of economic development and security cooperation. These primarily include development banks (the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Asian Development Bank and other international financial institutions (IFIs)), organizations focusing on combating security threats, countering terrorism and violent extremism (FATF, the Counter-Terrorism Directorate and the UN Counter-Terrorism Center, the Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee United Nations Security Council), the Organization for Development and Cooperation (OECD) or Transparency and Anti-Corruption (EITI)) and others. The countries of the region either actively use these organizations or institutions to support their economic development, or want to join them, including for security cooperation purposes. In recent years, the standards and procedures of these organizations have begun to include more and more requirements related to the observance of human rights and the protection of space for civil society. This is also implemented through assessment missions and consultations with civil society, creating opportunities for effective advocacy. In this regard, from December 2024 to the present, the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights (KMBHR) has been implementing the project "Working Group of Civil Society Organizations on Sustainable Development in Central Asia". The purpose of the project – Enhancing the capacity of regional CSOs and human rights defenders to advocate for socio-economic, environmental, and fundamental human rights in the context of economic transformation (infrastructure projects, mining, oil and gas, etc.) by creating a Working Group of Civil Society Organizations for Sustainable Development in Central Asia to advocate for International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and others international organizations dealing with issues of economic development and security cooperation, as well as by training human rights defenders and civil society activists to use existing mechanisms to comply with the requirements and standards of international development banks and other international organizations in the field of human rights and civil society development. The project implementation consists of several parts: Part 1: Research Conducting research to prepare an analytical document and recommendations for effective advocacy. For this purpose, a small start-up meeting is planned with experts from Central Asia to discuss priorities and areas of activity in a broader sense (10 experts from the region and other countries, online). The study will include an analysis of existing standards and regulations adopted by international financial institutions (IFIs) and other international organizations dealing with economic development and security cooperation, as well as related to human rights and civil society. Part 2: The main modules of the project – Creation of a Working Group of Civil Society organizations on Sustainable Development in Central Asia for advocacy in International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and other international organizations dealing with economic development and security cooperation;– conducting an analysis of the standards, rules and procedures of international financial institutions (IFIs) and other international organizations involved in cooperation in the field of economic development and security related to human rights and civil society;– analyzing the legal framework of relations between the countries of the region with international financial institutions (IFIs) and other international organizations involved in cooperation in the field of economic development and security;– Development of an advocacy strategy for the observance of human rights and the development of civil society in the countries of the Central Asian region in international financial institutions (IFIs) and other international organizations dealing with economic development and security cooperation. Project plan 1. Formation of a list of experts (10-15 people) and identification of human rights and other CSOs that could become members/participants of the Working Group of Civil Society Organizations on Sustainable Development in Central Asia. 2. Holding an online expert meeting to discuss the list of international financial institutions and other organizations that may become the target of the work of the Working Group of Civil Society Organizations on Sustainable Development in Central Asia to discuss the goals and objectives of the project. 3. Conducting an analysis (1-3 experts per country – 2-4 countries): – documents, standards, internal rules, regulations and procedures of the IFI and other international organizations involved in cooperation in the field of economic development and security related to human rights and civil society, to be determined by experts of the Working Group of Civil Society Organizations on Sustainable Development in Central Asia;– Legal and political relations of the countries/governments of the region with IFIs and other international organizations dealing with economic development and security cooperation, to be determined by experts of the Working Group of Civil Society Organizations on Sustainable Development in Central Asia;– Existing tools, tools, procedures and "best practices" for human rights advocacy and civil society development. 4. Preparation of an overview analytical note based on the results of the analysis, expert discussion of the research results (online, at least 20-30 organizations and experts from 4 countries) and development of a strategy for the Working Group of Civil Society Organizations on Sustainable Development in Central Asia. Based on the results of the discussion, it is planned to develop a strategy for the Working Group of Civil Society Organizations on Sustainable Development in Central Asia, as well as an information guide on advocacy in international financial institutions (IFIs) and other international organizations dealing with economic development and security cooperation, with its translation into the official languages of the Central Asian countries.

List of members of the working group