Yerevan Municipality Ranks Last in Transparency According to Transparency International

On October 16, a presentation of the report titled "Accessibility of Information in the Capital Cities of European Countries" took place, during which the results registered by the Yerevan Municipality and the possible ways to improve its transparency and accountability were discussed. The event was attended by representatives from public and international organizations, as well as media outlets.

The study was conducted under the auspices of Transparency International Slovakia across 26 European capital cities, using 14 indicators related to the accessibility of information, the decision-making processes of municipalities, management of financial resources, procurement transparency, availability and format of information on city council sessions, as well as the ethics rules for elected representatives.

Sonya Ayvazyan, the Executive Director of the Anti-Corruption Center of Transparency International, delivered opening and welcoming remarks. The findings of the research were presented by Mikhail Avetisyan, a program specialist and researcher at the Anti-Corruption Center.

According to the speaker, the consortium of Transparency International decided to conduct research on information accessibility. The research was conducted at the individual city level, and a subsequent idea arose to carry out a comparative analysis to understand the best practices among European capitals.

Mikhail Avetisyan noted that the research was based on the analysis of data from the official websites of the municipalities, and inquiries were also sent to the city administrations. Due to the comparatively small number of indicators, a full classification of the capitals was not conducted. Instead, the cities were divided into three groups - high, medium, and low-performing.

Mikhail Avetisyan presented Yerevan's results across all 14 indicators, revealing that Yerevan ranked last. He clarified that the research was conducted during the post-revolutionary period, based on data from October to December. However, he noted that the municipality's website has since been improved.

Stockholm, the capital of an old democracy, also ranked among those with low scores. In contrast, Eastern European capitals recorded higher indicators. The speaker explained that countries in Eastern Europe are now adopting transparency laws that contain more rigorous requirements, taking into account the high levels of corruption.

The presentation of the research was followed by a discussion, during which Mikhail Avetisyan and Sonya Ayvazyan answered the questions of the participants.