This is the first time that Azerbaijani NGOs are opening up to the world in such a manner

On April 17, 2026, a press conference was held at the Agency on State Support to Non-Governmental Organizations of the Republic of Azerbaijan regarding the 5-year operation of the institution.

Fuad Mammadov, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the NGO Agency, stated that the Decree signed a few months ago by President Ilham Aliyev on improving the operations of the NGO Agency and amending certain decrees and orders in this regard, is a large-scale reform program in the NGO sector: “This means that the new grant model of the NGO Agency, implemented since September 2023, and its tangible results have been commended, and it has been decided to apply this model across the entire country. The new ‘single window’ mechanism of state support to NGOs opens a completely new qualitative stage in the development of the NGO sector as a whole. With this Decree, the NGO Agency has become a regulatory body for the first time. The entire team of the Agency will mobilize all its strength to worthily justify this faith and trust”.

Fuad Mammadov emphasized that intensive work is currently underway to launch the “State Support to Non-Governmental Organizations” information system. This System will serve to strengthen coordination among state institutions regarding all types of NGO funding, create a unified database and accounting, distribute topics in line with national priorities, organize and manage the process on a “single window” basis, and make NGO activities more efficient, measurable, and result-oriented.

Aygun Aliyeva, Chairperson of Board of the NGO Agency and member of the WUF13 Organizing Committee, stated that Azerbaijani NGOs are seriously preparing for WUF13: “The WUF13 NGO Forum will be held on May 19, 2026, organized by the NGO Agency. Influential civil society representatives from more than 100 countries are expected to attend this Forum. This global event will become the WUF13 legacy of both local and foreign NGOs”. A. Aliyeva announced that the General Assembly of the Global South NGO Platform is expected to be held on May 14 within the framework of “Baku Urban Week”, and the 2nd Solidarity Forum of NGOs of Member States of the Organization of Turkic States is scheduled for May 16, with the Agency acting as a partner in both international events.

The Chairperson of Board brought statistical indicators regarding the NGO Agency's activities to the attention of the participants and emphasized that the development process is ongoing: “The level of execution by the Agency of tasks arising from the President's decrees and orders, as well as relevant state programs, was 86% in 2022, 88% in 2023, 97% in 2024, and 98.5% in 2025. In 2024, with the sponsorship of the Agency for State Support to NGOs, 25 events by Azerbaijani NGOs took place in 7 foreign countries. In 2025, a record was set with 43 events held in 17 different countries. This is the first time that Azerbaijani NGOs are opening up to the world in such a manner. Baku's transformation into the permanent headquarters of such a massive institution as the Global South NGO Platform, where NGOs from 116 countries are represented, as well as a regional body like the NGO Platform of Member States of the Organization of Turkic States, which unites 8 countries, has played a crucial role in this process”.

Fuad Rzazade, Department Head of the Agency, announced that an annual increase in applications for the NGO Agency's grant competitions has been recorded: “While 779 organizations showed interest in the competitions for 2024, this figure rose to 915 for 2025, and reached 981 for 2026. In recent years, NGOs' skills in teamwork, finding successful ideas, transforming them into attractive projects, and working with the media have been strengthening, while financial and execution discipline in projects is increasing”.

It was also reported at the press conference that the Azerbaijan NGOs Cooperation Forum will be held in the city of Ganja in September 2026.

During the meeting, the NGO Agency's website (ngoagency.gov.az) with a completely new design was also presented to the public. Fatima Bayramli, the Agency’s Information and Communication Manager, gave a presentation on the features of the updated page.

Following this, media representatives familiarized themselves with the Agency’s operations on-site in an “Open Door” format.

The NGO Agency was established on April 19, 2021, by the relevant Decree of President Ilham Aliyev.