On May 6-8, a three-day training course on Strengthening the Participation of Professional Civil Society Organisations in the Development of Program Budgeting Policies was held within the framework of the “Constructive Dialogue Network of Armenian CSOs” established in the scope of the EU funded “Commitment to Constructive Dialogue” Project (CCD). The training was organised for the civil society organisations members of the “Constructive Dialogue Network of Armenian CSOs”
The training was held in the scope of the “Budget for All” sub-grant project implemented by “WINNET Armenia” Network of Women Resource Centres in the scope of the CCD project.
According to Ms Ruzanna Torozyan, Project Manager of the “Budget for All” sub-grant project implemented by the “WINNET Armenia” Network of Women Resource Centres, the organised training enables CSO representatives to make evidence based recommendations during public discussions. “We are trying to improve our knowledge related to the public budget, and understand all the mechanisms and tools that will enable our participation in budgeting processes in the near future and later. We all, are sectoral organisations and coalitions and later being involved in the process of the discussion of the budget applications of the ministries, will bring o the result when the expert opinions and suggestions made by us will be included and reflected in the public budget and the participation of NGOs will help solve many problems in Armenia,” she said.
Mr. Hovhannes Avetisyan Public Finance Management Expert introduced to nearly 45 representatives of civil society organisations, the budgeting approaches and techniques, concepts and definitions of expenses, formation of the public budget, and legislative basis for calculations of budget expenditure.
In a conversation with us he mentioned that this is a new, unprecedented process by which NGOs are attempting to involve at the initial stage of the state budgeting process, when the ministries and the chief budget allocations managers draft applications to the Ministry of Finance and their and submit to their sectoral programmes. “We try to involve CSOs in order to make sure that there are quality programs, to create the opportunity to spend those funds more efficiently, to solve more problematic issues, focusing on the more targeted issues and for this process. And thus during these three days we provide knowledge to the participant NGOs for this processes so that there will be ready to get involved with the ministries and become part of this process,” Hovhannes Avetisyan said.
Mr. Karen Brutyan, Deputy Minister of Finance Deputy delivered a speech at the closing of the course. He informed that in 2020 it is necessary to have a qualitatively different budgetary process and be sure that the budgetary programs and activities are contextual. “Control over state institutions through non-governmental organisations will not be established. The criticism should not be considered as a negative phenomenon. Just on the contrary, we should try to make the state bodies to get closer to the people and different groups of people for whom the programs are being implemented as a result of the final outcome,” the Deputy Minister said.
Mr. Karen Zadoyan, CCD Project Manager, President of the Armenian Lawyers’ Association, summing up the three-day training, thanked the event organisers, course participants and the Ministry of Finance for cooperation. “This cooperation is in the good of our country and the civil society organisations sector can have a strong impact on the development of public policies and public control, which is mutually beneficial,” Karen Zadoyan said.
