Praxis Paper 27. Research in Action: civil society working to improve governance in post-conflict Kyrgyzstan

This Praxis Paper is based on the results of the Analytical Skills Training Programme (ASTP) conducted in Southern Kyrgyzstan from June 2011 to January 2012.

The paper begins with a short history of ASTP in Central Asia, the post-conflict context in which it took place in 2011-12, and its participants. The main components and methodology of the programme are then described, including the training course, research studies carried out by participants, and discussions that brought together actors from the civil society, government and business sectors in Osh and Jalalabad. Further sections give a more detailed analysis of: 1) how the programme coped with the unstable external environment, 2) how successful it was in enhancing the capacity of participants, and 3) how well it succeeded in improving civil society-state relations and local governance.

The programme was initiated by INTRAC Central Asia, involved two partner NGOs – the Public Association ‘Centre Interbilim’ in Osh and the Civil Society Support Center in Jalalabad – and funded by the British Embassy in Kazakhstan. A final conference presenting the findings of research projects organised during the programme was funded by the Soros Foundation Kyrgyzstan.