Can the Percentage Philanthropy Project help you?
   Responding to requests for assistance from NGOs and other bodies interested in developing
   percentage laws in their countries is an important part of the Percentage Philanthropy Project.
   NIOK and project partners can provide, upon request,  assistance to NGOs interested in
   lobbying for and implementing percentage laws in their own country along the lines of help
   provided earlier to the Forum Information Centre (FIC) in Slovakia and the Non-
   Governmental Organisation Information and Support Centre (NISC) in Lithuania. When these
   organisations expressed interest in developing percentage laws based on the Hungarian
   model, NIOK was able to offer assistance and partnership to these organisations by sharing
   information and experience, arranging study visits and assisting in lobbying efforts regarding
   the percentage mechanism.

   What has been the result of help provided by NIOK?
   Taking the example of Lithuania, Vaidotas Ilgius, Director of the NGO Information and
   Support Centre (NISC) in Vilnius believes that assistance from NIOK has been helpful in
   three ways. 

   Firstly, NIOK introduced NISC in detail to the origins of the Hungarian 1% Law, the process
   and factors involved in drafting and passing the law, the mechanisms of its implementation
   and the impact on the third sector, state policy and budget. Without that, it would have been
   impossible for NISC to understand the concept of a percentage law and develop the project
   that led to the launching of a "2% campaign" in Lithuania.

   Secondly, NIOK helped to persuade Lithuanian government to include "2%" as part of their
   political agenda. NISC organised a conference in order to present the "2%" idea, and NIOK
   provided two speakers who explained to the representatives of the Lithuanian Parliament, the
   Ministry of Finance, the Tax Inspectorate and others what would be the benefits of such a law
   in terms of raising civic awareness and philanthropy in Lithuania. In addition, NIOK provided
   information that helped towards the publishing of a feasibility study on implementing a 2%
   Law in Lithuania. 

   Finally, NIOK's advice regarding the results of Hungarian research on impact of the
   Hungarian 1% Law helped build stronger arguments during the debates on the draft Income
   Tax Law in the Lithuanian Parliament in 2002 and achieve greater results namely, 2% of paid
   income tax instead of 1%!

   More details of Lithuania's experiences can be found in Vaidotas Ilgius's papers in the study
   on Percentage Philanthropy on this website.