Azernews.Az

BAKU – At least 70 Azerbaijani non-governmental organizations receiving assistance from the government will face sanctions this year, a state body aiding NGOs said Wednesday.

Azay Guliyev, chairman of the Council for State Support to Non-Governmental Organizations under the President, told a meeting Wednesday that the measure was due to some NGOs’ having failed to submit reports on the projects funded by the Council so far.

"Some NGOs have not been submitting reports on time concerning the projects they have undertaken. A host of those organizations have not presented them at all. They are failing to comply with both the requirements of the law and their commitments assumed when relevant agreements were signed [with the Council]."

Guliyev said tough action will be taken against those organizations. A ban will be imposed on granting projects to these NGOs for two years. Afterwards, these organizations will be reported to law enforcement agencies.

According to Guliyev, the Council allocated 2.1 million manats ($2.625 million) under 352 projects in 2010.

98 of the state-funded projects concerned social and economic issues, while 59 projects aimed to support the initiatives of regional NGOs. 54 projects pertained to human rights and democracy, while 43 sought to convey the truth about the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorno Karabakh to the world community, 39 pertained to education and culture, and 24 environmental protection. The government also financed 19 projects aiming to promote Azerbaijan’s integration into the world community as well as 16 healthcare projects.