World Non-Governmental Organizations Day (27/02)

February 27 is World Non-Governmental Organizations Day or World NGO Day. World NGO Day). Sometimes the holiday is also called World Day of NGOs (non-profit organizations).

The history of the holiday is connected with the activities of the Council of Baltic Sea States – of an international organization established in 1992 in Copenhagen. In 2010, at the Baltic Sea NGO Forum, which was held in Vilnius, the idea was voiced to establish World Day, which should be a reminder of the role of non-governmental and non-profit organizations in building civil society, protecting the rights and interests of citizens, supporting countries and citizens who find themselves in difficult situations, victims of natural disasters, environmental disasters, etc.

The initiative to establish a day dedicated to the activities of NGOs belongs to Marcis Liors Skadmanis, who, as a student and studying law, realized the role of non-governmental organizations in the structure of civil society. The idea was supported at the forum of NGOs from the Baltic region countries.

The IX Baltic Sea NGO Forum in 2010 announced the date and determined the day of its celebration – on February 27. 2 years later, in 2012, the holiday received legal confirmation and official status, thanks to the corresponding decision of the Council of Baltic Sea States. This decision was supported by the UN and the EU.

It is worth noting that the role of NGOs in solving global problems of sustainable world development was recognized by the UN back in 1950, when this international organization officially introduced the concept of « international non-governmental organization».

On February 27, 2014, World NGO Day was celebrated at the official international level and the main events dedicated to this date took place in Helsinki.

Currently, more than 10 million non-governmental and non-profit organizations are registered in the world; they quickly help solve the most complex problems: they collect humanitarian aid, protect the interests of children, people with disabilities and animals, restore cultural monuments, etc. Often NPOs implement unique projects, which have no analogues either in the public or private sectors.

In Russia, according to the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation as of 2022, more than 210 thousand non-profit organizations are registered. The activities of NPOs are regulated by the Federal Law «On Non-Profit Organizations», which was adopted on January 12, 1996 and is regularly supplemented.

According to Rosstat, Russian NGOs are most actively represented in sports, in the field of patriotic education of youth, education, charitable activities, culture, art, and the provision of social services to the population.

Traditionally, World NGO Day is celebrated with forums, conferences, exhibitions and other events that discuss issues and highlight the achievements of non-governmental and non-profit organizations in building civil society and promoting civic initiatives as part of the UN Sustainable Development Programme. Representatives of government agencies of different states are invariably present at the main events. Often the guests of the event are leaders of countries, foreign ministers, and representatives of regional and international NGOs and NGOs are present here regularly.

Created on the shores of the Baltic, World NGO Day has become a truly international holiday, now celebrated around the world.

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