CIVICUS discusses a new wave of closures of civil society organisations (CSOs) in Nicaragua with the team from the Central American Association for Development and Democracy (ACDD).
ACDD was formed in Costa Rica in 2021 as a continuation of the Federation Nicaraguan Network for Democracy and Local Development, a platform established in 1994, with legal personality since 2006, which was cancelled by the authorities in February 2019.
In recent weeks, the Nicaraguan government has forced a mass closure of CSOs, including foundations, schools and churches. This means over 5,500 organisations have closed since 2018. President Daniel Ortega has accused civil society and the Catholic Church of supporting opposition protests that he describes as part of a coup attempt.
