This applies in particular to the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development (VARAM), the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Economy.
According to information released by the Ministry of Finance regarding state budget funding for non-governmental organisations over the past two and a half years, there is evidence of both marked favouritism and the receipt of funding by NGOs whose objectives do not align with the functions of the ministries when allocating funds to non-governmental organisations.
The Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Culture, and the Ministry of Agriculture were examined previously. This article examines the allocation of NGO funding by the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Economy, and the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development (VARAM).
It should be recalled that on 6 August of this year, the Ministry of Finance published the volume of state budget payments to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for the last two and a half years (from 2024 to mid-2026).
The data compilation uses the State Treasury data file on NGO funding published by the Ministry of Finance (also included in the Cabinet of Ministers meeting materials), as well as the NGO data browser created by Edgars Jēkabsons on 6 August (https://edgarsjekabsons.lv/darbnica/nvo-dati-2026/). Edgars Jēkabsons is one of Latvia's leading information technology specialists with over 20 years of experience.
VARAM and NGOs – this ministry acts as a guarantor of income for “green NGO activists” and “independent experts”
The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development (VARAM) allocated approximately 10.3 million euros to NGOs between 2024 and 15 July 2026. The ratio of VARAM’s NGO expenditure to its total expenditure was 4.7% in 2024 and 3.07% in 2025, which is significantly higher than the average for state institutions (1.24% in 2024 and 1.44% in 2025, respectively).
According to its statutes, VARAM is the leading state administration institution in the fields of nature conservation, regional development, local government development and oversight, spatial planning and land management, public administration service management, information society and digital transformation development planning, coordination and management, public administration digital technology management, as well as data management.
Consequently, VARAM's functions include developing policy in the following areas: nature conservation, regional development, local government system development, spatial planning, including landscape planning, land management, information society management, public administration service management, and public administration digital technology management. While the Ministry of Agriculture is responsible for rural development, VARAM's scope is much broader – covering all regional development.
The largest NGO recipient of funding from this ministry between 2024 and 15 July 2026 was the foundation “Latvijas Dabas fonds” (2.965 million euros, 28.7% of NGO funding), the objective of which is to promote the conservation of biodiversity in Latvia (“Conservation and restoration of biodiversity in Latvia with responsibility for the planet and people”).
In second and third place are organisations closely related to regional development – the Latvian Association of Local and Regional Governments (1,100.1 thousand euros, 10.64% of NGO funding), and the Latvian Country Tourism Association “Lauku ceļotājs” (622.2 thousand euros, 6.02% of NGO funding). These were followed by the Latvian Ornithological Society (609.3 thousand euros, 5.89% of NGO funding), the Baltic Environmental Forum (383.9 thousand euros, 3.71% of NGO funding), the “Mākslīgā intelekta centrs” foundation (370.0 thousand euros, 3.58% of NGO funding), the “Vides izglītības fonds” (343.3 thousand euros, 3.32% of NGO funding), the association “Baltijas dabas kapitāla institūts” (306.9 thousand euros, 2.97% of NGO funding), and the “Pasaules dabas fonds” (269.5 thousand euros, 2.61% of NGO funding). Except for the “Mākslīgā intelekta centrs” foundation, whose objectives coincide with VARAM’s digital technology policy function, the other NGOs are linked to nature conservation.
Although many nature conservation NGOs are significant recipients of Latvian state budget funds, they are in no hurry to highlight their organisation’s connection to state funding. For example, the “Pasaules dabas fonds” foundation is the associate partner of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Latvia. The WWF is governed by a decentralised network where the strategy is determined by the WWF International board, but the operations of each national branch are controlled by its own board. The most recent annual report on the Latvian foundation’s website is for 2023, from which it can be seen that income from membership fees for both 2023 and 2022 was exactly zero. The foundation’s income consisted of state grants, project fund financing, and economic activity. Judging by the published NGO data, the annual contributions of the Latvian foundation for maintaining the global World Wide Fund for Nature network were covered by VARAM. Over the past two years, 129 thousand euros were allocated to it from the programme “21.00.00 Environmental Protection Fund and contributions to international organisations”. In total, between 2024 and 15 July 2026, the “Pasaules dabas fonds” foundation received just over half a million euros from all state structures. Besides VARAM, funds were also transferred to the foundation by the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Climate and Energy, as well as the Society Integration Foundation.
Assessing the non-governmental organisations with the highest VARAM funding, it must be concluded that the objectives of the largest recipients are consistent with VARAM's functions. However, in the case of VARAM, there is clear evidence of favouritism, where particularly large funds are awarded only to a few “chosen” NGOs. Furthermore, there is a markedly unequal distribution of resources between the ministry’s functions.
The ministry has been delegated eight functions. This means that, if distributed proportionately, one functional sector should be allocated approximately one-eighth (12.5%) of the total NGO funding. In reality, only seven nature conservation-related NGOs (“Latvijas Dabas fonds”, Latvian Ornithological Society, Baltic Environmental Forum, “Vides izglītības fonds”, the association “Baltijas dabas kapitāla institūts”, “Pasaules dabas fonds”, “Zaļā brīvība”) received 48% of all funding allocated to NGOs by VARAM over the last two and a half years.
However, evaluating those NGOs that receive significantly less funding – only a percentage or fractions of a percentage of the total funding allocated by VARAM to non-governmental organisations – a balanced approach between recipients can be observed. In this group of NGOs, there is no longer a hypertrophied redistribution of money in favour of just one function; instead, one can find non-governmental organisations that implement goals for almost all of the ministry’s functions.
Conclusions. Evaluating only NGO funding, VARAM shows hypertrophied and disproportionate financing of one ministerial function (nature conservation), taking state resources away from the implementation of other ministerial functions. Moreover, there is reason to believe that resources intended for nature conservation and environmental protection, which are allocated to non-governmental organisations from the Latvian state budget, have been monopolised by only a few non-governmental organisations close to the political elite.
The scale of funding distribution to several nature conservation-related Latvian non-governmental organisations raises well-founded questions about the “independence” of these organisations and the independence of the “experts” associated with them. Individuals whose present and future income, and whose families' well-being and future, are closely tied to the increase in the volume of state budget funds directed towards nature conservation goals are not independent assessors. Admitting the fact that a particular animal or plant species is no longer endangered in Latvia, but that due to mass depopulation of rural areas there are now many such species, means a reduction in state and public funding. This also means a reduction in the income of non-governmental activists and “independent experts” and the loss of the main, or even only, financial support for this group of people. Such experts are not interested in telling the truth, especially if public disclosure of the truth threatens their well-being and that of their families. They are interested in painting a bleak picture, looking for and highlighting rarely encountered environmental violations, finding a ten-year-old bird’s nest to call for the declaration of a micro-reserve, etc. Each old nest and whipped-up outcry by public media about another environmental threat means additional state funding and additional income for the group of “non-governmental” experts. It is time to stop considering experts from state-overfed non-governmental organisations as independent assessors. Perhaps there are good specialists among them, but experts closely linked to state-funded NGOs are an interested party in a brutal fight for the redistribution of state resources. They are not objective and independent assessors.
Another problem arises if, for a long time, excessive funding is granted to certain nature-related NGOs through political decisions. This creates risks regarding the use of these NGOs in internal political battles and the competition between business groups.
If the main money-giver, just like Don Corleone (the main character in Mario Puzo’s novel (and the excellent film by director Francis Ford Coppola) “The Godfather”), asks to carry out public activities (pickets, trespassing on property with filming, etc.) against one company, but for the same discrepancies asks not to touch another company, it is impossible to refuse such a request... If you refuse, you will be left “sucking your paw” and sweeping the streets, if you manage to escape with your skin intact from a criminal case started immediately for squandering state funds or for something else! Rude and cynical.
Unfortunately, there are facts that give rise to suspicions that “eco-terrorist” groups have been receiving state funding for a long time, and are thus rewarded for their participation in business and political conflicts on the side of the money-giver.
Ministry of Finance and NGOs
The Ministry of Finance allocated more than 73 million euros to NGOs between 2024 and 15 July 2026. After the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Finance is the second-largest NGO funder in the Latvian government. The ratio of the Ministry of Finance’s NGO expenditure to its total expenditure was 1.13% in 2024 and 1.73% in 2025.
In the statutes, only two functions of the Ministry of Finance are indicated: “4.1. to develop financial policy; 4.2. to organise and coordinate the implementation of financial policy.” In addition, there is a proviso to “perform other functions specified in external regulatory acts.”
More detailed specialisation of the Ministry of Finance is described in point 5 of the statutes, which sets out the ministry’s tasks. These are: to develop and implement policy in the areas of state budget and financial management, customs, tax and fee systems, tax administration, public procurement, internal audit, accounting, including reporting on corporate sustainability, corporate audit and sustainability report assurance, European Union Cohesion Policy, and other foreign financial aid audits, among others.
The Ministry of Finance must develop a unified methodology for preparing and executing the state and local government budget; draft laws for the annual state budget and its explanations; provide methodological assistance on issues related to budget preparation and execution to direct administration institutions and derived public persons; evaluate the compliance of budgets approved by local governments with the requirements stipulated in regulatory acts, analyse local government budget execution indicators, etc.
The Ministry of Finance must develop medium-term macroeconomic development scenarios for the state and general government budget forecasts to justify fiscal policy. It must coordinate submissions by companies regarding the cancellation of customs duties and the application of quotas, as well as the further progress of rejections of submissions made by other EU member states to the European Commission, etc.
It must develop public-private partnership policy and coordinate its implementation; carry out audits on the absorption of EU funds; and formulate state policy in the field of public benefit organisations. It must formulate policy for organising gambling and lotteries, as well as state and consumer interest protection policy in the field of using precious metals, precious stones, and their products. It must manage financial market policy and policy in the field of preventing money laundering and terrorism financing. It handles various tasks related to the EU budget and funds control.
The Ministry of Finance must perform the functions of a supervisory competent authority regarding sworn auditors and sworn auditor commercial companies, as well as exercise oversight of the Latvian Association of Sworn Auditors in the execution of state administration tasks delegated to it by the Law on Audit Services.
It should be noted that the association “Latvijas Zvērinātu revidentu asociācija” (Latvian Association of Sworn Auditors), whose oversight is explicitly mentioned in the Ministry of Finance’s statutes, does not appear among the NGOs receiving state budget funding. The “Latvijas Zvērinātu revidentu asociācija” organises qualification exams for sworn auditors, performs certification of sworn auditors, and performs other state-delegated functions in accordance with Article 6 of the Law on Audit Services. According to the law, the “Latvijas Zvērinātu revidentu asociācija” is an independent professional corporation of Latvian sworn auditors, whose “members pay an annual membership fee determined by the association’s general meeting for the financing of its operations.”
The largest recipient of NGO funding from the Ministry of Finance between 2024 and 15 July 2026 was the “Latvijas ebreju kopienas restitūcijas fonds” (Latvian Jewish Community Restitution Fund) (12 million euros, 16.42% of NGO funding). According to Article 4 of the Law “On Goodwill Compensation to the Latvian Jewish Community”, 48.7 million euros must be paid out in portions from the state budget until 31 December 2032, and the recipient is the “Latvijas ebreju kopienas restitūcijas fonds” foundation. Implementing the law is the task of the Ministry of Finance.
Among the largest recipients of NGO funding from the Ministry of Finance are also the “Latvijas Informācijas tehnoloģiju klasteris” (9.78 million euros, 13.38% of NGO funding), the association “Latvijas Digitālais akselerators” (9.38 million euros, 12.84% of NGO funding), and the “Augstākās izglītības un zinātnes informācijas tehnoloģijas koplietošanas pakalpojumu centrs” (3.65 million euros, 5.00% of NGO funding). However, all these NGOs should be funded not by the Ministry of Finance, but by VARAM funds, because the Ministry of Finance’s statutes define other goals and tasks for it.
The fifth-largest recipient of NGO money from the Ministry of Finance was the association “Tavi draugi” (3.44 million euros, 4.71% of NGO funding). The association “Tavi draugi” provides assistance in Latvia and Ukraine by organising and coordinating the voluntary involvement of Latvian residents, organisations, and companies. This is an important goal for Latvian society and Latvia’s security. However, first of all, one must ask what this has to do with the Ministry of Finance’s functions? Secondly, according to the association’s annual report, in 2023, 63.5% of the association’s income (1.84 million euros) consisted of donations and gifts, while almost everything else came from state grants and EU funds, with only a small amount from economic activity. In turn, in 2024, donations and gifts made up only 29.6% of the association’s income (2.16 million euros), while almost everything else was state grants and EU funds, including 1.2 million euros that came from the Ministry of Finance. The 2025 report has not been posted on the association’s website, but last year the Ministry of Finance directed 2.2 million euros to the “Tavi draugi” association. Helping Ukraine is important and necessary, but one should not deceive. Structures that once helped Ukraine primarily using donations and gifts are now helping Ukraine by spending State budget funds. Should the Ministry of Finance be the very structure that chooses intermediaries for providing assistance to Ukraine? That is not on the list of the Ministry of Finance’s functions! Furthermore, the “Tavi draugi” association is funded not only by the Ministry of Finance but also by the Society Integration Foundation.
The sixth-largest recipient of funds allocated to NGOs by the Ministry of Finance was the foundation “Ziedot.lv” (3.15 million euros, 4.31% of NGO funding). The foundation is well-known in Latvia. According to the Register of Enterprises of the Republic of Latvia, its goal is “to promote positive social changes in Latvia, to involve society in solving topical problems; to promote the attraction of local donations for the implementation of public benefit goals, especially in the fields of education, children and youth, social affairs, health, environment, sports, and civil society development; to promote philanthropy and charity, serving as a resource for companies, communities, and individuals in the field of philanthropy, providing expertise and consultations.” These are important socially significant goals and tasks. Since Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the foundation has implemented projects for the support of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians. A significant mission! Significant! Necessary! There is no discussion about that! Only, what does all this have to do with the functions and tasks of the Ministry of Finance?
In the top ten largest recipients were also the “Latvijas Samariešu apvienība” (3.13 million euros, 4.28% of NGO funding), the foundation Entrepreneurs for Peace (2.56 million euros, 3.50% of NGO funding), the Latvian Hotel and Restaurant Association (1.36 million euros, 1.86% of NGO funding), and the “Raunas evaņģēliski luteriskās draudzes diakonijas centrs” foundation (1.27 million euros, 1.74% of NGO funding).
The association “Latvijas Samariešu apvienība” is “one of the largest and oldest non-governmental organisations in Latvia, having helped people for more than 30 years. ‘Joy to help’ – our motto in carrying out good deeds.” Much has been heard and read about the association’s good deeds! What does all this have to do with the functions and tasks of the Ministry of Finance?
The foundation Entrepreneurs for Peace is a business organisation for supporting Ukraine. Important work! Ukraine must be supported! When entrepreneurs run out of money for supporting Ukraine, the state can for some time finance the organisation instead of the entrepreneurs. Although it is not entirely right to do so. It would be more accurate to rename the foundation “Ministry of Finance together with entrepreneurs for peace”, not just Entrepreneurs for Peace. The same question: what does all this have to do with the functions and tasks of the Ministry of Finance?
The Latvian Hotel and Restaurant Association is an important industry organisation. Its functions directly relate to the Ministry of Economy, whose statutes specify direct responsibility for tourism policy. However, over the past two and a half years, the Ministry of Economy’s funding for the Latvian Hotel and Restaurant Association was only 7.5 thousand euros, while the Ministry of Finance’s funding was 1.36 million euros.
The “Raunas evaņģēliski luteriskās draudzes diakonijas centrs” foundation “is an enterprise founded by German partners and the Rauna Lutheran congregation. The foundation is a partner to all people who are experiencing difficulties, need help, as well as to people with special needs. The foundation carries out the aforementioned service work in accordance with the basic principles of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia and in practice implements Christian love for one’s neighbour.”
The foundation’s goal is diaconal work and the provision of social services to pensioners, persons with special needs, the sick, and the disabled, as well as promoting their social integration in Rauna parish. So. Not throughout all of Latvia, but only in Rauna parish. If anyone does not know, then diaconia is the practical service and social work of the Christian church, aimed at providing help to people in their physical, material, and spiritual needs.
Over the last two and a half years, the Ministry of Welfare allocated 856 thousand euros to the diaconia centre, while the Ministry of Finance allocated 1.2 million. People who are not convinced atheists will certainly agree that diaconia work is important for Christians. Only once again, what does this have to do with the functions of the Ministry of Finance?
Even more than one million euros were received from the Ministry of Finance over the last two and a half years by the “Centrs Marta” (1.21 million euros, 1.65% of NGO funding), the Latvian Association of Information and Communication Technologies (1.10 million euros, 1.51% of NGO funding), the Light Industry Enterprises Association (1.08 million euros, 1.48% of NGO funding), and “Zaļās mājas” (1.03 million euros, 1.41% of NGO funding). The tasks of “Centrs Marta” have already been reviewed in the previous article. “Centrs Marta provides state-paid services and support to people who have suffered from violence or human trafficking.” “Centrs Marta” is funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Welfare, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Culture, and even the Society Integration Foundation. Everyone is friendly in funding “Centrs Marta”, without worrying about the different functions of each ministry.
The goals of the Latvian Association of Information and Communication Technologies correspond to VARAM’s functions, but the goals of the Light Industry Enterprises Association align with the Ministry of Economy’s functions. However, over the last two and a half years, the Ministry of Economy’s funding for the Light Industry Enterprises Association was only 9.4 thousand euros, while the Ministry of Finance’s funding was 1.08 million euros. In turn, the association “Zaļās mājas” is “an organisation whose goal is to promote understanding of the forest industry and develop sustainable construction in Latvia that respects ecological limitations and is socially and financially beneficial.” Again. What are the Ministry of Finance’s functions?
The top 25 list of NGO funding recipients from the Ministry of Finance is full of industry and professional organisations whose functions directly relate to the Ministry of Economy: “Latvian Information and Communication Technology Association” (985.3 thousand euros, 1.35% of NGO funding), Latvian Window and Door Manufacturers Association (925.3 thousand euros, 1.27% of NGO funding), “Latvian Printing Association” (761.5 thousand euros, 1.04% of NGO funding), “Association of Mechanical Engineering and Metalworking Industries” (708.7 thousand euros, 0.97% of NGO funding), Latvian Electrical and Electronic Industry Association (620.5 thousand euros, 0.85% of NGO funding), “Latvian Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry Association” (562.3 thousand euros, 0.77% of NGO funding), “Federation of Security and Defence Industries of Latvia” (557.5 thousand euros, 0.76% of NGO funding), Latvian Food Enterprises Federation (517.1 thousand euros, 0.71% of NGO funding), “Latvian Restaurant Association” (460.7 thousand euros, 0.63% of NGO funding), etc.
Even the Latvian Theatre Workers Union (476.2 thousand euros, 0.65% of NGO funding) received most of its funding not from the Ministry of Culture, but from the Ministry of Finance.
The 35th largest recipient of NGO support from the Ministry of Finance was the association “Papardes zieds” (340 thousand euros, 0.46% of NGO funding). As the first goal of the association in the Register of Enterprises of the Republic of Latvia, it is stated: “To ensure that all Latvian residents have the opportunity to exercise their sexual and reproductive rights, so that people and families are healthy, happy, and resilient, so that children are born expected, loved, and healthy.”
The second goal is “Young people are a particularly important target group for the organisation’s activities, therefore the goal of ‘Papardes zieds’ is to involve young people in activities that concern their sexual and reproductive rights, to inform Latvian youth on issues related to sexual and reproductive health, to involve young volunteers in peer education, as well as to support youth initiative and promote youth participation in decision-making.”
Very important goals. The realisation of sexual rights is a significant part of human biology. Only, what does all this have to do with the functions of the Ministry of Finance? It is not difficult to achieve a Cabinet of Ministers decision to clarify the statutes and write in “promotion of the realisation of sexual rights” as one of the Ministry of Finance’s functions, then there will be no contradictions or unnecessary questions! It should be added here that, while granting less funding than the Ministry of Finance, “Papardes zieds” also received funding from the Society Integration Foundation, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Welfare, the Ministry of Education and Science, and the Ministry of Defence. In total, over the last year and a half, “Papardes zieds” received half a million euros from the state budget.
From all this, one has to conclude that the Ministry of Finance has long since been transformed into a centre for funding non-governmental organisations. Due to some, perhaps once very important, circumstances, the Ministry of Finance has been entrusted with functions to be the main distributor of EU money flows in sectors that do not correspond to the sphere of competence of the Ministry of Finance and the ministerial functions set out in the statutes approved by the Cabinet of Ministers.
Ministry of Defence and NGOs
As already mentioned, the Ministry of Defence also supports NGOs significantly less than other ministries. However, between 2024 and 15 July 2026, 244 NGOs received funding from the ministry. True, 29 non-governmental organisations received an amount of less than 100 euros, 72 non-governmental organisations received between 101 and 500 euros, and 32 non-governmental organisations were funded with an amount between 501 and 1000 euros. Respectively – 133, or more than half of the supported NGOs, received less than 1000 euros from the Ministry of Defence over the two and a half years. Another 31 NGOs received between 1001 and 2000 euros from the Ministry of Defence, while 40 non-governmental organisations received support above 10,000 euros.
The functions of the Ministry of Defence are – “to develop state defence policy; to organise and coordinate the implementation of state defence policy; to organise and coordinate the implementation of state policy in the field of geodesy, cartography, and geospatial information; to organise and coordinate the implementation of state policy in the field of military education and science; to plan the medium-term and long-term capability development of the National Armed Forces, including infrastructure, personnel, finances, and material and technical support; to organise and coordinate policy for promoting the development of the national defence and security industry; to provide the public with the necessary information resources on the topic of state defence; to promote public understanding of Latvia’s participation in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; to create audiovisual materials on the topic of state security and defence in accordance with the audiovisual resource production guidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; to manage investments in the state defence industry, to organise and coordinate policy for promoting the development of the national defence and security industry.”
This is a very broad range of functions. Consequently, it is perfectly logical that the six largest (over 100 thousand euros) NGO recipients of Ministry of Defence funding between 2024 and 15 July 2026 were the association “Federation of Security and Defence Industries of Latvia” (232.5 thousand euros, 10.62% of total NGO funding), the “Brāļu kapu komiteja” (210.4 thousand euros, 9.61% of total NGO funding), the Latvian Transatlantic Organisation (200.8 thousand euros, 9.18% of total NGO funding), the Latvian National Soldiers Association (107.6 thousand euros, 4.92% of total NGO funding), the “Gambija” Hunters Club (106.2 thousand euros, 4.85% of total NGO funding), and the Riga Latvian Society (104.6 thousand euros, 4.78% of total NGO funding). The goals of practically all these NGOs coincide with the Ministry of Defence’s functions. A question could be raised about the “Gambija” Hunters Club, however, its area of operation coincides with the location of the newly established Sēlija training ground. A similar picture exists with the next six largest NGO support recipients – Latvian extreme wrestlers club (71.9 thousand euros, 3.28% of total NGO funding), Latvian Shooting Federation (63.3 thousand euros, 2.89% of total NGO funding), Drone Force – Europe (60.8 thousand euros, 2.78% of total NGO funding), Latvian Red Cross (57.3 thousand euros, 2.62% of total NGO funding), LATVIAN NATIONAL PARTISANS ASSOCIATION (53.4 thousand euros, 2.44% of total NGO funding), and Skydive Latvia (47.2 thousand euros, 2.16% of total NGO funding). These are organisations for sports that correspond to improving the military preparedness of soldiers. The association “Drone Force – Europe” was founded to create a leading centre of competence for unmanned systems and unite the community of unmanned system operators, while Skydive Latvia is an organisation where one can obtain a skydiver’s certificate, etc. Only a relatively small amount of ministry funding is directed to NGOs that do not formally comply with the direct functions of the ministry (the Open Society Foundation DOTS, which is one of the founders of the LAMPA festival, the Latvian Ornithological Society, etc.). It must be concluded that the Ministry of Defence’s expenditure on NGOs is insignificant compared to the ministry’s total expenditure, and the expenditure on NGOs is consistent with the ministry’s functions.
Ministry of Health and NGOs
The Ministry of Health is not among the largest supporters of NGOs. In the last two and a half years, the Ministry of Health transferred more than 2.5 thousand euros to only 16 non-governmental organisations. Between 2024 and 15 July 2026, the Ministry of Health allocated approximately 4.3 million euros to NGOs. The ratio of the Ministry of Health’s NGO expenditure to its total expenditure was 0.08% in 2024 and 0.11% in 2025.
Unlike other ministries, the functions in the Ministry of Health’s statutes are written very concisely: “to develop health policy; to organise and coordinate the implementation of health policy; to perform other functions specified in external regulatory acts.” In turn, the ministry’s tasks are divided into three large blocks – public health (7 tasks), healthcare (18 tasks), and pharmacy (6 tasks). Everything possible is covered, from patient care and treatment to research, medical staff and pharmacist education, further education, etc.
The largest recipient of NGO funding from the Ministry of Health between 2024 and 15 July 2026 was the association “Skalbes” (1.3 million euros, 30.49% of NGO funding). It is a non-governmental organisation that maintains a 24-hour helpline “providing remote consultations to people with psychological difficulties, including depression, suicidal thoughts, loneliness, loss, addictions, etc.”, as well as implementing various projects related to mental health. The top six recipients also included the association “Nepaliec viens” (538.8 thousand euros, 12.60% of NGO funding), the “Latvian Pharmacists Association” (520.1 thousand euros, 12.17% of NGO funding), “Bu(o)rn” (463.0 thousand euros, 10.83% of NGO funding), Rehabilitation centre “Mēs esam līdzās” (420.1 thousand euros, 9.83% of NGO funding), and the “Latvian Association of Kidney and Multiorgan Replacement Therapy” (228.1 thousand euros, 5.34% of NGO funding). The task of the association “Nepaliec viens” is “social participation, the development of civil society, providing support to socially vulnerable persons, children, youth, working-age persons with special needs, and seniors who need it,” while the goals of the association “Bu(o)rn” are “To promote people’s physical and mental health by conducting preventive sessions and training, as well as by developing methodology for improving mental health; to promote people’s understanding and awareness about the impact of stress, psychological trauma, grief, and other factors on human mental health.”
The next group of six largest recipients included “DIA+LOGS”, a support centre for all who are affected by HIV/AIDS (199.4 thousand euros, 4.66% of NGO funding), the Latvian Red Cross (176.8 thousand euros, 4.13% of NGO funding), the association “DIŽVANAGI” (162.3 thousand euros, 3.80% of NGO funding), the foundation “Baltic Institute of Social Sciences” (106.6 thousand euros, 2.49% of NGO funding), “Latvijas Samariešu apvienība” (72.5 thousand euros, 1.70% of NGO funding), and the Latvian Medical Association (44.9 thousand euros, 1.05% of NGO funding). It should be noted that, over the last two and a half years, the proportion of transfers from the Ministry of Health out of the total income of the Latvian Red Cross is only slightly above one percent of the total state budget money (16 million euros) that the Latvian Red Cross received. The main funders of the Latvian Red Cross were the Ministry of Welfare and the Society Integration Foundation. In turn, one of the main goals of the association “Dižvanagi” is “the implementation of rehabilitation and socialisation programmes for children with disabilities and the creation of support systems for the families of these children.”
From this, one can conclude that the Ministry of Health’s expenditure on NGOs compared to the ministry’s total expenditure is insignificant and is consistent with the ministry’s functions.
Ministry of Economy and NGOs
The Ministry of Economy allocated more than 5.7 million euros to NGOs between 2024 and 15 July 2026, which is significantly less compared to the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Welfare, and even the Ministry of Agriculture. The ratio of the Ministry of Economy’s NGO expenditure to its total expenditure was 0.39% in 2024 and 0.93% in 2025, which is less than the average proportion of funding for state structures (2025 – 1.44%).
In the statutes, the functions and competencies of the Ministry of Economy are listed in great detail: “to develop, organise, and coordinate policy in the following sectors: foreign economic policy; construction policy; internal market policy; innovation development policy; business development policy; competitiveness development policy; housing policy; consumer rights protection policy; privatisation policy; industrial policy; standardisation policy; national economy structure policy; tourism policy.” Furthermore, its functions are to organise and coordinate the implementation of laws and other legal acts.
This broad range of functions is supplemented by 11 tasks, of which there are 7 additional tasks in the field of coordination of national economy structure policy, and 6 additional tasks in the field of foreign economic policy.
The largest recipient of NGO funding from the Ministry of Economy between 2024 and 15 July 2026 was the association “Junior Achievement Latvia” (643.7 thousand euros, 11.36% of NGO funding), which has been operating for decades to develop and improve “young people’s knowledge and skills in entrepreneurship using practical methods at all levels of education, to create future international leaders and industry experts; to ensure the operation of Junior Achievement Worldwide and Junior Achievement Europe programmes in Latvia.”
This was followed by the foundation “TechChill” (392.1 thousand euros, 6.92% of NGO funding), the foundation “Startup House Riga” (365.1 thousand euros, 6.44% of NGO funding), the foundation “Latvian Technological Centre” (259.9 thousand euros, 4.59% of NGO funding), and the Latvian Startup Association (216.1 thousand euros, 3.81% of NGO funding). There should be no doubts about the alignment of these NGOs’ goals with the Ministry of Economy’s functions.
In turn, the sixth-largest recipient of NGO money from the Ministry of Economy was “RAC.LV” (212.4 thousand euros, 3.75% of NGO funding), or the Rencēni Auto Club – “an association that has been in motor sports since 1995.”
The eighth-largest recipient of NGO money from the Ministry of Economy was the “BĒRNU SLIMNĪCAS FONDS” (Children’s Hospital Foundation) (199.0 thousand euros, 3.51% of NGO funding), but the tenth-largest was the Latvian Basketball Association (168.6 thousand euros, 2.98% of NGO funding).
Sports policy is directly and explicitly delegated to the Ministry of Education and Science (point 4.1 of the statutes), while support for the Children’s Hospital is not in the list of the Ministry of Economy’s many functions.
It looks like the Ministry of Economy (after the Ministry of Education and Science) is the second-largest funder of sports-related NGOs. The Ministry of Economy extensively supported basketball, karate, and other sports clubs and federations over the last two and a half years (in descending order):
“STREETBASKET” (103.5 thousand euros, 1.83% of NGO funding), Latvian Volleyball Federation (97.5 thousand euros, 1.72% of NGO funding), “European Youth Basketball League” (85.5 thousand euros, 1.51% of NGO funding), the foundation “Māris Štrombergs Agency” (70.1 thousand euros, 1.24% of NGO funding), the association “Karate School” (51.6 thousand euros, 0.91% of NGO funding), Latvian Judo Federation (41.9 thousand euros, 0.74% of NGO funding), “Latvian Golf Federation” (40.8 thousand euros, 0.72% of NGO funding), “Alfrēda Kraukļa VEF basketbols” (40.2 thousand euros, 0.71% of NGO funding), LATVIAN TAEKWONDO FEDERATION (37.8 thousand euros, 0.67% of NGO funding), health improvement club “KASKADS” (33.8 thousand euros, 0.60% of NGO funding), Latvian Olympic Committee (30.3 thousand euros, 0.53% of NGO funding), Latvian Fencing Federation (19.8 thousand euros, 0.35% of NGO funding), hunters and fishermen club “Lūsīši” (19.7 thousand euros, 0.35% of NGO funding), “Ippon.lv” (15.5 thousand euros, 0.27% of NGO funding), sports association “LATVIAN KARATE ASSOCIATION” (13.8 thousand euros, 0.24% of NGO funding), Latvian Minifootball Association (8.7 thousand euros, 0.15% of NGO funding), the association “Daugavpils Basketball” (5.1 thousand euros, 0.09% of NGO funding), Latvian Table Tennis Federation (2.7 thousand euros, 0.05% of NGO funding), etc.
In turn, 9.9 thousand euros were granted to the association “Kriya Yoga Association in Latvia” (0.17% of NGO funding). For those who do not know – this association “unites people with an interest in spiritual growth, meditation, and a healthy lifestyle. The association’s activity is based on the authentic Kriya Yoga tradition, taught by the great Masters – Paramahansa Hariharananda and Paramahansa Prajnanananda.” In turn, Kriya Yoga is “an ancient system of meditation: breath and muscular practices, contemplation of chakras, and the development of deep mindfulness.”
No other ministry allocated even a cent to the Kriya Yoga Association, so all other ministries’ chakras will remain unpurified. This sentence could also be the conclusion regarding the Ministry of Economy’s policy regarding NGO funding. However, it must be noted that, compared to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Economy spent significantly less on funding NGOs that do not correspond to its direct functions.
Conclusions
Once again, the concluding sentence from the new Ministry of Finance management when publishing the NGO funding data must be recalled: “The Ministry of Finance invites the State Audit Office to evaluate the submitted information and submit proposals to the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Finance for the streamlining of expenditure for 2027 and the medium term 2027-2030, for inclusion in the expenditure review report.”
That is also understandable. The new ministers do not have to answer for the NGO funding practices of previous ministers, but the State Audit Office could be a neutral assessor of the excesses that have taken place.
NGO support from the remaining ministries will be examined in one of the next articles.
First publication of the article on the portal diena.lv on 30 October 2026