Non-profit

East West Management Institute

Website:

ewmi.org/

Location:

NEW YORK, NY

Tax ID:

13-3586432

Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)

Budget (2017):

Revenue: $15,173,103
Expenses: $15,070,559
Assets: $3,010,699

Type:

International Policy Think Tank

President:

Adrian B. Hewryk

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The East-West Management Institute is a left-leaning nonprofit international aid and advocacy organization located in New York City that is partially funded by several notable left leaning grantmaking groups. The organization was founded in 1988 and focuses on issues in former soviet states in central and eastern Europe. 1  The organization is funding by a combination of government grants and grants from private foundations, including several notable left-leaning funders such as George Soros’s Open Society Foundations, the Rockefeller Brother Fund, and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. 2

In 2018, the right-leaning watchdog Judicial Watch obtained documents revealing that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) under the Obama administration had directed taxpayer dollars to East West Management Institute to fund activities in Albania that Judicial Watch alleged would give the country’s socialist government greater control of the Albanian judiciary. 3

Background

Th East-West Management Institute was founded in 1988 to support the developing governments of former states of the dissolving Soviet bloc in central and eastern Europe. The organization states that its work began a year before the fall of the Berlin Wall and was founded with the intent of helping states transition to post-Soviet life. The work of the Institute focuses on policy creation in European countries that supports government administration, court systems, economic development, and technical support. The institute also engages in advocacy programs to push for certain policies among citizens and encourage citizens to participate in the government. While most of the work conducted by the Institute still focusses on central and eastern Europe, it has expanded to conduct much of the same type of work in other countries in other parts of the world. 4

The East West Management Institute operates under four main areas of expertise that its programs fall under. These include the Rule of Law, supporting judicial systems; Economic Development, which supports infrastructure projects; Civil Society, which includes advocacy work around cultural issues; and Environment, which support environmentalist policies in target nations. 5

Activity and Programs

In a 1990 white paper titled “Underwriting Democracy,” left-leaning philanthropist George Soros wrote about his reasoning for funding a network of foundations to support fledgling countries in the former Soviet Union and support preferred systems of government in said countries. Soros noted that he could envision the new East-West Management Institute as becoming a permanent institution. 6

Controversy During Obama Administration

In 2018, right-leaning watchdog group Judicial Watch obtained documents through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit that revealed that the East West Management Institute had received taxpayer dollars through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as part of a nearly $9 million campaign in Albania. Judicial Watch alleged that the money was reportedly used to give the socialist government of Albania greater control over the nation’s judicia system. Judicial Watch also alleged that the Open Society Foundations of left-wing billionaire George Soros was given direct access to the State Department’s decision making process on its use of taxpayer funds in Albania, with it being further noted that representatives from the Open Society Foundations were frequently asked to help assess grant applications submitted to the State Department. 7

References

  1. “2015 Annual Report.” East-West Management Institute. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://ewmi.org/sites/ewmi.org/files/OrgFiles/EWMI%202015%20Annual%20Report.pdf
  2. “Donors and Partners.” East-West Management Institute. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.ewmi.org/DonorsAndPartners
  3. Singman, Brooke. “Obama State Dept used taxpayer dollars to fund George Soros group’s political activities in Albania, watchdog group says.” Fox News. April 4, 2018. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/obama-state-dept-used-taxpayer-dollars-to-fund-george-soros-groups-political-activities-in-albania-watchdog-group-says
  4. “East-West Management Institute.” European Foundation Centre. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.efc.be/member-post/east-west-management-institute/
  5. “East-West Management Institute, Inc. (EWMI).” DevEx. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.devex.com/organizations/east-west-management-institute-inc-ewmi-2551
  6. Soros, George. “Underwriting Democracy Encouraging Free Enterprise and Democratic Reform Among the Soviets and in Eastern Europe.” 1990. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.georgesoros.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/underwriting_democracy-chap-7-2017_10_05.pdf
  7. Singman, Brooke. “Obama State Dept used taxpayer dollars to fund George Soros group’s political activities in Albania, watchdog group says.” Fox News. April 4, 2018. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/obama-state-dept-used-taxpayer-dollars-to-fund-george-soros-groups-political-activities-in-albania-watchdog-group-says
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Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: September 1, 1995

  • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2017 Dec Form 990 $15,173,103 $15,070,559 $3,010,699 $1,541,856 N $14,999,061 $171,664 $1,458 $563,540 PDF
    2016 Dec Form 990 $12,222,169 $12,586,802 $2,477,413 $1,111,114 N $12,222,520 $0 $222 $483,380 PDF
    2015 Dec Form 990 $11,294,325 $11,010,159 $2,474,310 $743,378 N $11,292,983 $1,177 $147 $443,080 PDF
    2014 Dec Form 990 $18,130,543 $18,309,464 $3,030,252 $1,583,486 N $18,123,432 $8,823 $244 $53,621 PDF
    2013 Dec Form 990 $20,937,301 $20,959,110 $3,144,434 $1,518,747 N $20,867,128 $62,098 $225 $581,300 PDF
    2012 Dec Form 990 $20,081,918 $19,924,599 $3,482,493 $1,834,997 N $20,036,916 $23,400 $256 $1,728,346 PDF
    2011 Dec Form 990 $19,721,379 $19,599,351 $3,303,556 $1,813,379 N $19,656,860 $37,824 $223 $2,426,836 PDF

    Additional Filings (PDFs)

    East West Management Institute

    575 MADISON AVE
    NEW YORK, NY 10022-2511