Outcome KGZ_D_2.1

SN Outcome 2/UNSDCF Outcome 4: By 2027, all people in the Kyrgyz Republic enjoy the benefits of fair and accountable democratic institutions that are free from corruption and apply innovative solutions that promote respect for human rights, and strengthen peace and cohesion.

Despite positive Kyrgyzstan’s macroeconomic outlook for 2024, in political domain there has been a decline in human rights and the rule of law in the Kyrgyz Republic continued, which in the medium term will negatively affect socio-economic development, particularly for vulnerable and marginalized groups. The shrinking democratic and civic space, along with existing and newly proposed restrictive laws targeting freedom of expression, mass media, freedom of association, and public participation, as well as the growing harassment of political opponents, journalists, and activists, underscored the need for promotion of inclusive public participation that UN Women continued to do through a series of platforms and dialogues facilitated. This has been done starting from the local level in Batken province in building an inclusive system of governance and ensuring voice and participation of the most vulnerable and underrepresented groups in decision making, to high level policy and public advocacy events such as National March Forum at the premises of National Parliament, Beijing +30 review process based on a wide consultation process with Civil Society Organizations (CSOs, and the Central Asia Women Leadership Caucus, uniting women groups from the whole region to address the issues of Women, Peace and Security and women economic development. Civil society, as both as service providers and as promoters of accountability, will remain critical partner of UN Women to safeguarding civic space and delivering services to the most vulnerable. I n 2024 UN Women Kyrgyzstan CO continued implementation of Strategic Note (SN), during which the Country Office made some progress toward achieving this Outcome. In this context, local partners accessed innovative tools (speed-dating, design thinking, gender-action learning system) to facilitate a gender-responsive and human-centric approach to local development, fostering peace, social cohesion, and enhanced local adaptation to climate-related risks. In the wake of the administrative territorial reform in Batken, which consolidated municipalities and streamlined governance structures, targeted efforts were made to enhance the efficiency and inclusivity of local development planning. Focusing on 7 out of 9 priority Local Self-Governments (LSGs) in Batken and Leilek districts, these initiatives strengthened participatory governance by fostering closer collaboration between local authorities and communities. Innovative engagement methods, such as "speed dating" consultations in Suu-Bashi, Toguz Bulak, and Tortkul municipalities, created dynamic spaces for citizen voices to shape local decision-making. These efforts not only improved governance efficiency but also empowered communities to play a more active role in shaping their own development trajectories. Fifteen LSG working group members from three municipalities used the ‘speed dating’ tool to engage 223 diverse participants—including government officials, NGOs, activists, residents, religious leaders, and ethnic minorities—in local development and peacebuilding. This process enhanced awareness of gender, climate, and peace, prioritized community needs, and generated data for evidence-based planning. It resulted in recommendations for integrating community priorities into local development plans, fostering inclusive governance and stronger LSG-community collaboration.

SN Outcome 2/UNSDCF Outcome 4: By 2027, all people in the Kyrgyz Republic enjoy the benefits of fair and accountable democratic institutions that are free from corruption and apply innovative solutions that promote respect for human rights, and strengthen peace and cohesion.

In 2025, progress was achieved in strengthening fair, accountable, and inclusive democratic institutions through enforceable guarantees for women’s participation and rights protection. Following the self-dissolution of the Jogorku Kenesh and early parliamentary elections in November 2025, women’s representation in Parliament increased structurally due to electoral reform. The introduction of multi-member districts with mandatory gender balance requirements—ensuring a minimum of 30 out of 90 seats for one gender—established a 33 per cent floor for women’s representation, up from approximately 21 per cent in the previous convocation. This marked a shift from voluntary measures to institutionalized safeguards, enhancing the legitimacy and inclusiveness of national decision-making. This reform was supported by sustained advocacy by UN Women, in partnership with women’s civil society, donor partners, and the UN system, to address systemic under-representation of women in Parliament. Through evidence-based advocacy platforms, national dialogues, and coordinated public messaging in 2024–2025, UN Women contributed to increased political and public consensus on the need for enforceable representation mechanisms, supporting the adoption and implementation of the revised quota system in line with democratic and human rights standards. Accountability and rule-based responses to violence against women were strengthened through legislative reform. In October 2025, Parliament adopted amendments to the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence and related provisions of the Code of Offences, introducing mandatory risk assessment, electronic monitoring of perpetrators, criminalization of stalking, and increased detention periods. These reforms reduced discretionary practices and aligned national legislation more closely with international human rights standards, including CEDAW. UN Women, together with OHCHR, UNDP, and the UN Gender Theme Group, provided technical support to ensure compliance with international norms and emerging risks, including digital violence. Inclusive policy development on peace and equality advanced through women’s participation in national frameworks. In 2025, consultations with women activists, peacebuilders, and youth leaders informed the finalization of the National Action Plan on Gender Equality (2025–2027) and the Fifth National Action Plan on UNSCR 1325, both progressing toward endorsement. Inputs from border and climate-vulnerable areas strengthened the integration of climate-security risks, cyber threats, and women’s and youth engagement. UN Women facilitated these processes through national and regional dialogues and policy forums. Institutional capacity for gender-responsive and accountable governance was strengthened through the Academy of Public Administration, which launched a Digital Learning Platform and embedded gender-responsive leadership training into civil service education. With UN Women’s technical support, including curriculum co-design and budget planning, gender-responsive leadership development was institutionalized as a permanent function of the Academy, contributing to sustainable public sector reform. See at http://www.apap.kg/ru/KratkaiainformatsiiadliaMAGISTRATURY_biudzhiet/ http://www.apap.kg/ru/blog/1221-Otkryvaiutsia-novyie-tsifrovyie-vozmozhnosti-dlia-obuchieniia-ghosudarstviennykh-i-munitsipalnykh-sluzhashchikh.html https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AomvUdW2X/?mibextid=wwXIfr

SN Outcome 2/UNSDCF Outcome 4: By 2027, all people in the Kyrgyz Republic enjoy the benefits of fair and accountable democratic institutions that are free from corruption and apply innovative solutions that promote respect for human rights, and strengthen peace and cohesion.

The year 2023 was the first year of SN implementation and therefore the CO has made only some progress in achieving this Outcome. Within this Outcome area local partners accessed innovative tools to ensure gender responsive and human centric local development process for promoting peace, social cohesion and increasing local adaptation to climate insecurities. 9 target Local Self Governments (LSGs) of Batken and Leilek districts improved the efficiency of their LSG plans development process and strengthened interaction between communities and LSGs using the tools of "speed dating" and "design thinking". Further, LSG working groups used those innovative tools that allowed them to conduct a constructive dialogue with community residents, gather more ideas and discuss community concerns, producing the following results: 38 civil society organisations contributed to the development of the Vision to strengthen engagement between authorities and communities for joint action to promote Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda and jointly foster the community culture of peace, social cohesion and create a safe and prosperous society 149 LSG representatives (9 localities) increased their understanding of "How?" to engage community members in the local development planning (LDP) process and integration of gender and climate security priorities into the local plans and budgets 764 (495j/269m)- 617 community members and 147 LSG representatives participated in dialogues by applying innovative tool of ‘Speed Dating’ which enabled local partners to improve the quality of community engagement. 173 (130w/43m) - 142 community members and 31 members of LSG working groups from 9 LSGs used the Design Thinking method and jointly developed project ideas for inclusion in local development plans. 9 LSGs integrated 136 project ideas in their LDPs, taking into account priorities on gender equality, climate change adaptation and security.