Baku: An audit conducted by the UNDP Audit and Research Office at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Country Office in Azerbaijan has unveiled legal and financial irregularities, APA reports. The audit highlighted that the UNDP Azerbaijan Representative Office provided grants totaling $754,570 to 23 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for 29 projects in 2023. These funds were transferred to personal accounts through direct contracts with LLCs established by the NGOs or individuals employed by them.
According to Azeri-Press News Agency, inquiries sent to the UN Office in Azerbaijan and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) office in Azerbaijan regarding this matter have gone unanswered. The APA Agency requested information on the names and amounts allocated to the NGOs that received grants without state registration. However, the UNDP Azerbaijan office did not respond to these requests. A follow-up inquiry sent to the UNDP Headquarters also remains unanswered.
The audit report further revealed that the grants were not registered in compliance with Azerbaijani legislation, classifying them as illegal funds. The report did not disclose the names of the NGOs and LLCs that benefited from the grants. Additionally, the UNDP Azerbaijan Office allocated $1.3 million for enhancing NGO capacity and another $1.3 million for expanding the mine action program in 2023, but details about the recipients were not provided.
The investigation also uncovered that UNDP has been focusing on establishing Women’s Resource Centers in Azerbaijan. However, the activities of these centers remain unclear. Information obtained by APA suggests that attempts by state agencies to inspect the UNDP Women’s Resource Center in Baku were thwarted by the center’s director, who denied entry.
The audit report also raised questions about a $92,000 grant project aimed at providing basic training to women affected by the war. The specifics of this training and the identities of the beneficiaries were not disclosed in the report.