Open Society Institute

   (OSI)

   Budapest, Hungary. Est. 1993. The institute was created by Jewish investor and philanthropist George Soros to support his foundations in central and eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Those foundations had been established from 1984, to help former Communist countries in their transition to democracy. The OSI is a privately operated grant-making foundation that implements a range of initiatives to promote an open society by shaping government policy and supporting education, media, public health, human rights, and women's rights, as well as social, legal, and economic reform. To foster an open society on a global level, the OSI aims to bring together a larger Open Society Network of other nongovernmental organizations, international institutions, and government agencies. The OSI has expanded the activities of the Soros Foundation's network to other areas of the world where the transition to democracy is of particular concern. The network encompasses more than 50 countries, but Roma remain an important priority for funding.