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A preliminary assessment of Armenia’s legislative process prepared by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and presented in Yerevan on 18 November 2013 recommends measures to further streamline lawmaking procedures.

The assessment, prepared at the request of the OSCE Office in Yerevan, identifies six main areas of potential weakness in the legal framework related to the lawmaking process and recommends how procedures could be improved, including by providing greater flexibility in deadlines for reviewing draft laws and stepping up efforts to involve civil society in the drafting process.

“This initial review is the first step towards a comprehensive assessment of Armenia’s lawmaking system,” said Ambassador Andrey Sorokin, Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan. “We are confident it can lead to important policy reform that would ultimately improve the efficiency and effectiveness of legislative regulation.”

The presentation of the preliminary assessment in Yerevan brought together representatives of the Armenian government and parliament to discuss how the weaknesses in the legislative process identified by the assessment can be addressed.

“A transparent and inclusive lawmaking process is at the heart of high quality legislation, and is a commitment all OSCE participating States have undertaken,” said Alice Thomas, Chief of ODIHR’s Legislative Support Unit. “ODIHR is ready to further support the Armenian authorities in their efforts to enhance the lawmaking process, by conducting, upon request, a comprehensive assessment of this process, to provide recommendations that would help them find practical and workable solutions to improve it."

The preliminary assessment is available online here: www.osce.org/odihr/108446