On 13 May, a regional training course with participation of representatives of the local self-government bodies and Regional Administration of Ararat marz was held in Ararat City. The training was held within the framework of the nationwide awareness program on communication activities of the Whistle-Blowing System.

At the beginning of the training held as within the scope of the awareness campaign, the experts welcomed the participants for their willingness to participate in the training and then presented the concept of whistleblowing, the unified whistleblowing platform azdararir.am, the rules of its operation, as well as talked about the protection of privacy and anonymity and referred to the legal regulations of the system.

Then, in order to develop practical skills, the participants were divided into groups and performed practical work based on situational problems and real cases. During this activity, both experts and participants raised a number of crucial questions aimed at improving the system.

The courses are carried out in the framework of cooperation with the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), with the joint efforts of the “Armenian Lawyers’ Association” NGO and the Ministry of Justice.

The objective of awareness activities is to reduce negative perceptions in relation to whistleblowers, to increase public awareness about the vital role of whistleblowers, as well as to highlight the role of the Unified Electronic Platform for Whistle- Blowing (azdararir.am) in the fight against corruption.

As part of the nationwide campaign, it is planned to carry out educational activities in all regions of Armenia, involving community servants and other representatives. Before this similar trainings were carried in Sevan, Yeghegnadzor Goris Armavir and Hrazdan cities.

This article was produced with the financial support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the European Union (EU) within the framework of the Governance Progress Board measure of the Eastern Partnership Regional Fund for Public Administration Reform project implemented by GIZ. Its contents are the sole responsibility of the Armenian Lawyers Association and do not necessarily reflect the views of the German Government or the EU.