Additional Context: This information was collected by Amnesty International in their yearly 'State of the World's Human Rights' report. The 2024 Kyrgyz law on 'foreign representatives' was modelled after a Russian law, which was also implemented in Georgia, and other countries across Eastern Europe and Central Asia. This law requires all civil society organizations and human rights defenders receiving foreign funding to register as foreign agents, increasing government control and restrictions on operational independence.

Devex Researcher Note: Many active organizations working on a range of human rights and democracy-building initiatives have lost significant funding due to the U.S. aid cuts. Anestimated 78% of all U.S. programming in Kyrgyzstan was canceled, affecting organizations working on LBGTQI+ rights, anti-corruption, and civil society development. In conversation with The Aid Report, the representative of a peacebuilding and human rights organization said that the withdrawal of U.S. aid represents the "collapse of a system" that once supported religious freedom, youth peacebuilding, and civic education efforts across Central Asia. The loss of U.S. support is not solely through its programs, but its role coordinating and supporting organizations politically in the region, the representative told The Aid Report.

Source: Amnesty international