AKIPRESS.COM - Kazakhstan Rule of Law Program funded by the USAID and implemented by the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) organized May 26 the first meeting of a dialogue platform to strengthen the legal environment for civil society organizations (CSOs) in cooperation with the Committee for Civil Society Affairs under the Ministry of Information and Social Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan, US Embassy said.

The new dialogue platform is a permanent body for exchanging information related to improving the legal regulation of CSOs.

During the meeting, USAID Central Asia Deputy Mission Director Peter Young, leaders of prominent CSOs, government representatives, members of academia, and an international expert on CSO regulation, Dragan Golubović, discussed the mission and strategy of the dialogue platform. In his remarks Golubović noted: “The current legal framework for legislative development provides ample opportunity for CSO participation at every stage. However, there is room for improvement, including through smarter use of digital and online technology in the process.” Emphasizing the important role civil society plays in a democractic society, Young stated: “To improve transparency and public trust, it is important for government institutions to actively engage civil society in the legislative drafting process, public hearings, and law-making procedures that actively incorporate public consultations.”

Participants also discussed improving CSO participation in the planning, drafting, and monitoring of legislation and provided recommendations to the government.