06/2020 - Current
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) project: Supporting the Central Bank of Uzbekistan in developing and implementing financial education initiatives as part of its National Strategy for Financial Inclusion
2018-2019
The World Bank and Ministry of Finance of Russia
Project: Strengthening consumer protection in financial services
Project: Developing recommendations for Consumer Codex in the Russian Federation based on the best practices of France, Belgium and Brazil.
2018-2019
Strengthening capacity of Rospotrebnadzor specialists in Russian Federation; reviewing best practices in consumer protection and financial services users. Organising and leading study visits for Rospotrebnadzor specialists from Russia to India and South Africa.
2016-2018
FINANCIAL EDUCATION AND FINANCIAL LITERACY PROJECT
Project: Development of interaction between non-commercial organisations in the sphere of consumer protection.
Project: Development and implementation of modular training programs for education in Journalism in the field of financial literacy and financial services an consumers protection Project: Development of interaction between non-commercial organisations in the sphere of consumer protection.
Project: ”Strengthening capacity of Rospotrebnadzor specialists through familiarisation with best practices in consumer protection and in provision of advisory services to financial service users in India and South Africa, development of recommendations on how to use these practices to strengthen consumer protection in financial services in the Russian Federation".
2013-2014
Developing responsible financial markets and the Financial Ombudsman Consumer Protection Service: UK experience and Rospotrebnadzor practices.
Project Summary
The main objective of the project is to build capacity of federal and regional authorities in Russia and to implement Financial Ombudsman Service using the best practice from UK.
The Project will contribute to creation of the Financial Ombudsman Service in Russia that will simplify the dispute resolution between customers and financial organizations. First of all the project is contributing to proper development of legislative basis, which is now passing very important public hearing and consultation process. Secondly, the Project will help in setting up the organizational framework and operational scheme for Financial Ombudsman Service in Russia, which will be created in the 7 Federal Districts. The Project will contribute to better integration of Russia in the international ombudsmen networks and cooperation for responsible financial market development.
In the long-term perspective implementation of the Financial Ombudsman Service in Russia will also lead to strengthening the customers protection system in Russia, improving the financial literacy and developing of the financial market, settling disputes between consumers and businesses that are providing financial services such as banks, insurance companies, investment firms, financial advisers. The project will also have long term impact on empowering and protecting consumer.
2012-2013
Strengthening the capacity of Rospotrebnadzor's specialists in the area of financial services and financial consumer protection in Russia.
Project Summary
The project: strengthening consumer protection in financial services by strengthening capacity for financial consumer protection in the Consumer Protection Service, industry professional associations, and civil society is supported by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation and the World Bank under the Financial Education and Financial Literacy Programme (FEFL) - Component 4: Strengthening of consumer protection in financial services.
The key objective of the Project is to establish the frameworks for the system of qualification upgrading and retraining of Rospotrebnadzor specialists to ensure effective implementation of financial consumer protection function through conducting urgent training of employees currently responsible for financial consumer protection. Rospotrebnadzor is the Federal Service for Control of Consumers Protection in Russia.
The specific objectives of the Project include:
- Development of methodological materials and teaching aids for urgent training of Rospotrebnadzor specialists in the area of financial consumer protection; development of training structure.
- Conducting urgent full-time training of pilot groups of Rospotrebnadzor specialists in the fundamentals of financial literacy, qualification upgrading in the area of legal regulation of financial sector, study of the international experience in financial consumer protection.
- Preparation of analytical materials upon training completion along with the summary of practical experience to be further used for dissemination of successful experience among Rospotrebnadzor advisory centers, and for creating the plans for future trainings of Rospotrebnadzor specialists within the bounds of the FEFL Project;
- Development of recommendations for the establishment of internal training system for Rospotrebnadzor specialists (including the system of qualification upgrading and assessment of the level of employees’ expertise in the area of financial consumer protection).
- Study of the best international experience in financial consumer protection is in the core of the Project activities and include study tours to 4 countries: Great Britain, Poland, Belgium, and Brazil.
In each country study program includes visits and meetings with experts of the following reputable and best-practiced institutions of financial consumer protection:
- government regulating and supervisory services dealing specifically with financial consumer rights and financial services for consumers (preferably at federal and at regional / local levels);
- non-government consumer organizations and / or other civil society institutions oriented at protecting financial consumer rights and promoting financial literacy;
- out-of-court dispute resolution bodies for consumers whose rights are violated by financial institutions (financial ombudsman and / or other mediation institutions).
2009-2011
Empowering municipalities to better serve their constituents in relation to social and environmental rights in 50 municipal authorities in the Mugan region of Azerbaijan.
Project Summary
The overall objective of the project is to improve public and social services in the Mugan region. Each distinct region within the geographical remit of the project has around 30 settlements, remotely located and only 50% reached by tarmac covered roads, no public transport, and a third of which has very poor supply of electricity, gas and water.
The project aims to contribute towards improving some of these conditions for the local population through building the capacity of municipalities in the Mugan region to exercise their rights and responsibilities in favour of the population, which is the specific objective of the project. It is foreseen that by strengthening the capacity and knowledge of civil society organisations and local authorities in relation to their responsibilities, they will be able to participate better in the definition of sustainable development strategies, appropriate for the region, and hence meeting the needs of its population. In other words, the project will ensure that the municipal authorities are in a position to carry out their responsibilities and duties at the local level as a result of the decentralisation process. Specifically, the project will enable the municipalities to gain confidence in the face of Executive officials placed locally who continue to obstruct their efforts, and provide them with the necessary skills to better serve their constituents. The project will therefore facilitate interaction between State and Non-State Actors and support an increased role for local authorities within the decentralisation process, as stated within the legal framework in Azerbaijan. The elaboration and prioritisation of local development plans will result in a better use of the available resources, both by consumers and the municipalities, and as such contribute to improving the living conditions of the population, easing some of the poverty burden existing within their daily lives.
2008
Consultant for RFE/RL Georgian radio and TV studies - Programme Evaluation for InterMedia, Washington DC, USA
Summary
The scope of the contact included programme evaluation for RFE/RL Georgian radio and TV studies, preparations of on-the-record evaluation for BBG broadcaster of four daily RFE/RL programmes and producing comprehensive report on crosscutting issues and the level of impact on consumers in the areas of products and services and corporate social responsibilities.
2008
Research ‘Role of the Diasporas in development on the UK example’
2007
Responsible Lending Standards and borrowing in Sweden.
Project Summary
The study on the project focused on findings: how opinion leaders define responsible lending and what they think about the responsible lending principles and standards used by our client products (credit cards, mortgages, personal loans, insurance and store cards) so that the client can then amend and improve those standards - not a marketing exercise. Views of experts from the field were attributed internally for the client report.
Discussion topics:
- About responsible lending in general - in Scandinavian countries, best practices, good & bad examples etc.
- Where responsibility lies in terms of responsible lending (consumer? credit provider? etc) and how it should be regulated/governed (self-regulation? legislation?)
- Reaction to our client's definition of responsible lending and the standards themselves - what is good, what is missing etc. The standards cover different areas of the relationship a credit provider has with its customers, namely: Product development, Marketing, Sales, Underwriting (Risk assessment), Customer service, Debt collection, Training & communication.
2007
Research and evaluation of the British energy market regulatory system in partnership with Simpson’s Consultancy.
Study visit of the energy sectors executives from the Russian Federation to the UK energy services providers: Ofgem, British Gas, EDF, Energywatch, Scottish Power and Npower.
2006- 2007
Research on the role of the civil society in a water reform in Ukraine, a pilot project supported by the European Commission.
2005
Evaluation of the national report on macroeconomic performance and sectoral economic reforms in Ukraine.
2004
Research and comparative analysis on consumer issues: including common services, consumer education, redress and representation in Easter Europe.
Prepared a study on the competition regimes and polices in Georgia, Azerbaijan and Tajikistan. These study later became part of the publication ‘Competition Regimes in the World’ that provided a comprehensive overview of competition policy regimes around the world.
