CIVICUS discusses the evolution, challenges and future of civil society in Latin America and around the world with Anabel Cruz, former CIVICUS Board chair, co-chair of the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Steering Committee and founding director of the Institute for Communication and Development (ICD) in Uruguay. ICD is a civil society organisation that defends civic space and promotes accountability, transparency and citizen participation.

Since the 1990s, civil society has organised globally through international networks that have shaped a collective voice in the face of shared challenges. Over the years, agendas have expanded from challenging corruption and demanding transparency to action on climate change, open government and the protection of human rights defenders. Today, civil society faces pressure from budget cuts, anti-rights rhetoric and restrictive laws, while it struggles to be recognised as a key pillar of democracy.

How have civil society agendas evolved since the 1990s?

In the early 1990s, democracy as a system was still relatively young: it had been only a few years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, apartheid was still in place in South Africa and many Latin American countries were just regaining democracy after long periods of dictatorship.

Those years marked a turning point in international coordination. Global networks and alliances such as CIVICUS, the International Society for Third Sector Research and Transparency International emerged, shaping a collective voice in the face of shared challenges such as accountability, corruption and the defence of democracy. It was also a time of booming international cooperation that strengthened many civil society organisations (CSOs), although in some cases support came at the expense of autonomy.

Over the years, agendas expanded and adapted to new global challenges. Climate change, environmental sustainability, open government and social innovation were added to issues such as corruption and transparency.

In the past decade, the protection of human rights defenders ceased to be a secondary issue and moved to the centre of the agenda, as Latin America became the most dangerous region in the world for those who defend rights, accounting for around 80 per cent of documented murders. Faced with a constant increase in attacks and threats, CSOs had to rethink their approach and move towards much broader and more comprehensive protection strategies.

When did organised civil society emerge in Latin America?

Latin America has had associative expressions since time immemorial. Indigenous peoples and communities developed sophisticated organisational forms, and even in colonial times there were many experiences of association, collaboration and defence of common interests. This intensified in the two centuries since, and gained new momentum with the transitions to democracy during the last quarter of the 20th century.

In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, many Latin American countries had dictatorial regimes. During these years, civic movements, trade unions and universities were repressed or shut down. Even so, they managed to keep civic values alive, and when the region regained democracy in the 1980s and 1990s, civil society re-emerged, reorganised itself and sought its place in the new political landscape.

The transition was not easy: it involved moving from opposition to proposal. CSOs had to consolidate themselves and learn to work alongside national and local governments and fight to be recognised as legitimate partners.

During what was seen as a progressive wave of the early 21st century, many civil society leaders were absorbed by governments, which weakened civil society. Maintaining autonomy in the face of power and finding ways to participate and exercise influence without losing independence has remained a major challenge.

What are the innovative examples of collaboration between civil society and governments?

One encouraging example is OGP, a space where civil society and governments sit down together to co-create public policies to address complex problems and promote accountability, participation and transparency. The goal is that, by working together with civil society and citizens, governments will function for the benefit of all people and not just the most powerful groups.

Today, OGP brings together over 70 national and 150 local governments, along with thousands of CSOs and representatives from other parts of society. Despite democratic setbacks and systemic challenges such as climate change, conflict and inequality, the model has proven that it works and collaboration is possible when based on equality and mutual respect. The 500-plus commitments made through OGP are more ambitious and have been shown to generate greater benefits for people than regular policymaking processes.

Even so, tensions remain. Some countries, such as El Salvador, have been suspended for failing to comply with these principles or for closing civic space.

What support does civil society need to become stronger?

For civil society to be recognised as a real pillar of democracy, we must rebuild trust, and to do that we must start by restoring the truth. As long as the narrative that CSOs are not accountable or are used for money laundering continues to circulate, there will continue to be restrictive laws that seek to criminalise and silence them. That’s why it’s essential to resist, defend civic space and show that a free and strong civil society is indispensable for democracy.

Civil society must be recognised as a legitimate voice, with guaranteed participation and access to autonomous resources, both national and international. To this end, funders must be more flexible and place greater trust in CSOs. For too long, international cooperation has measured impact only with quantitative indicators – such as how many events are held and how many people participate in them – without assessing institutional strengthening or the long-term changes CSOs generate. Philanthropy should be bolder and support long-term capacities and processes.

This interview was conducted during International Civil Society Week 2025, a five-day gathering in Bangkok that brought together activists, movements and organisations defending civic freedoms and democracy around the world. International Civil Society Week was co-hosted by CIVICUS and the Asia Democracy Network.