Programs in Eurasia

CIPE has offices in Moscow and Kyiv and strong partnerships with business-related NGOs throughout Eurasia. CIPE staff in the region play a strong role in helping business association leaders push for legislative reform aimed at reducing corruption. CIPE’s expertise honed in over two decades of experience in Eurasia is also used to improve corporate governance, train young entrepreneurs and strengthen business associations. In Russia, CIPE’s Moscow staff coordinates anti-corruption work with a network of 18 regional coalitions of business associations which have won reforms in key regional and national laws. In Ukraine, CIPE’s Kyiv office is helping give entrepreneurs a stronger voice in the run-up to parliamentary elections set for October 2012. In Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, CIPE partners work to boost journalists’ understanding of economic and business issues.

Throughout the region, CIPE continues to build the capacity of business organizations, facilitate anti-corruption reform and advocacy efforts, and foster broader public understanding and support for market-oriented reforms linked to democratic society.

Ukraine: Building the Capacity of Business Associations

CIPE’s Kyiv office, opened in 2010, is coordinating an effort to cultivate and nurture indigenous business associations. CIPE launched a series of seminars designed to strengthen associations representing Ukrainian small- and medium-sized businesses. Trainers from the U.S., Russia, and Belarus led the four-day seminars, discussing subjects ranging from membership retention to advocacy and legal issues. The program will lay the groundwork for strengthening private sector grassroots organizations by helping them become more effective in attracting members and, in turn, representing those members’ interests. As the associations begin to improve basic functions such as governance, management, and membership services, CIPE will shift its focus to seminars on public policy participation. Ideally, many of the participating associations will coalesce into groups that will collectively advocate for economic and legal reform.

Program Results & Impact

• In January 2011, several associations from the Vinnitsa region formed a coalition representing some 400 business owners. The coalition members agreed not to compete with one another for members and to jointly sponsor roundtable programs for the broader business community. The Vinnitsa coalition held two such programs in the spring, one on corporate social responsibility and the other on human resources issues.
• In follow-up surveys of business associations participating in the training seminars, two associations reported increases in membership. A total of 11 business associations reported improvements in financial stability through higher revenue from membership dues, expansion of services, and grant awards. Additionally, four associations have reorganized their departments so that they are able to take on additional activities.

Kazakhstan & Kyrgyzstan: Strengthening Understanding of Market Concepts

When citizens are equipped with facts and independent analysis, they can better engage in the democratic policymaking process at every level, keeping the government accountable to its constituents. If citizens are to understand the key factors affecting the economy and engage in public debate, they need accurate, objective information that is presented in clear terms by reliable sources. In Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, CIPE teamed up with the Kazakhstan Institute of Directors (KID) and the Kyrgyzstan Stock Exchange Press Club (KSEPC) to improve journalists’ critical thinking and analytical skills through training seminars so that mass media can report more accurately on basic economic and business issues. The program also focused on educating economic, management, and business faculty members of key universities on the benefits of corporate governance (CG) to national democratic and economic development. Openness, transparency, rule of law, stakeholder engagement, and accountable decision-making practices are critical components of advancing democratic values.

Program Results & Impact

• KID distributed 1,088 copies of its textbook, Corporate Governance: Kazakhstan Context, to 121 universities and eight regional libraries across the country, as well as key high-level government agencies. At least three universities in Almaty and Pavlodar use the textbook in MBA curricula.
• 102 (97%) out of a sample of 105 university professors at KID’s seminars utilize information received in their course curricula to advance CG understanding among university students. The same number disseminate materials received at these seminars to their peers.
• As a result of KSEPC education, 37 active journalists from print and electronic media in Bishkek and Osh have produced 88 articles in Russian, two articles in Kyrgyz, and two radio interviews in Kyrgyz on corporate governance issues.

Russia: Breaking Down Barriers to Business

One of the most effective approaches to fighting corruption is to focus on flawed and conflicting laws that give bureaucrats a dangerous amount of discretion. In 2010, the Saratov Chamber of Commerce and Industry rolled out a new approach that zeroes in on corruption-prone legislation. The Saratov Methodology, based on polls of more than 400 regional legal specialists and government officials, identified poorly crafted laws and processes. This approach reinforces the private sector’s importance in reducing corruption. This is part of the eight-year “SME Policy Advocacy” project funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Program Results & Impact

• Using the Methodology, eight regional business association coalitions are conducting reviews of local, regional, and federal legislation to improve the implementation of laws.
• A coalition in Perm advocated to improve the official procedure for leasing forest land. Local law enforcement officials recommended a reform of the agency that regulates state-owned forests.
• The Kirov Coalition worked with the local prosecutor’s office to change regulations that were allowing the government to refuse to rent space to retail trade kiosks. As a result, 900 kiosks and an estimated 2,700 jobs were saved in late 2010.
• The Saratov Coalition drew attention to the illegal practice of illegitimate consumer rights organizations carrying out inspections of businesses and levying fines. The coalition worked with local law enforcement to bring about the closure of one such organization.