NDI - Montenegro

NDI Poll on LGBTI Issues in the Balkans is a Call to Action

jfrant — Wed, 28 Oct 2015 20:35:44 +0000

Young, educated and urban residents in six countries in the Balkans show measurable support for LGBTI rights, but most respondents to a regional poll released by NDI today do not believe that LGBTI people should be able to live openly based on equal rights. The poll is a guidepost and a call to action to LGBTI groups seeking equal rights for their communities. NDI conducted the research as part of its commitment to more inclusive political processes, wherein all segments of society are able to influence decisions affecting their well being.

The poll reveals low levels of knowledge about the groups comprising the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex communities, and a correspondingly high degree of resistance to conferring equal rights and opportunities based on sexual orientation and gender identity. At the same time, poll respondents roundly disavow physical violence against LGBTI members of society. And for certain demographic groups, among them young and urbanized citizens, there is a small and perhaps growing acceptance of LGBTI rights.

The research was conducted over the summer of 2015 in Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.

NDI Public Opinion Poll in the Balkans on LGBTI Communities from NDIdemocracy

“In new democracies struggling to overcome ethnic and sectarian conflict, LGBTI rights have not been as high on the development agenda as they should be,” said Robert Benjamin, NDI’s Central and Eastern Europe Regional Director. “This poll suggests that homo/transphobia is not a fixed prejudice in the Balkans and that LGBTI rights are beginning to receive public recognition. Research of this kind is a critical tool, but to be effective the data needs to be integrated into communication and advocacy strategies that promote equal rights for LGBTI people.”

“The fact that LGBTI people are largely invisible to the general population produces low understanding of the size and scope of discrimination, physical violence and psychological abuse towards LGBTI people,” said Marko Ivkovic of NDI/Serbia, who directed the research. “In Serbia, for example, only 18 percent of the general population personally knows someone who is openly LGBTI, and that’s the highest rate among the countries surveyed.”

According to a LGBTI sample within the poll, three out of four LGBTI people have been exposed to psychological abuse and verbal harassment, one out of four have suffered physical violence, and one out of two LGBTI persons has faced discrimination at school, at work, or elsewhere due to their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. The general population perceives discrimination and violence against LGBTI citizens to be far less in frequency and scope.

The general population rejects same-sex marriage, but is prepared to see some marriage-related rights extended to same-sex couples. “When asked about hospitalization access, property inheritance and health insurance coverage for same-sex couples, more than one-third of the general population, on average, supports these measures,” said Lidija Prokic of NDI/Serbia.

LGBTI people surveyed in the poll and participating in companion focus groups expressed interest to become politically active, in terms of joining political parties and running for elected office. They report voting rates higher than the average turnout.

NDI is presenting data from the poll to LGBTI groups across the Balkans, and to elected officials and media. NDI is also helping LGBTI groups use the findings to build their activist base, giving their community visibility, engaging the public in ways that can shift general sentiment, and advocating before legislators for their physical security and open integration into society. NDI’s work with LGBTI communities is guided by the understanding that political participation is a fundamental means of addressing the social and economic inequities associated with marginalization.

Published on October 28, 2015

The NDI poll was conducted in summer 2015 in Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia in coordination with Ipsos Research. The poll was funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), with additional financial support from the U.S.-based Victory Institute and Sweden’s Civil Right Defenders and pro bono technical support from Grindr for Equality.

Civic Updates

vrao — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 17:55:00 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Resource Type:

Civic Update

Language:

English

Attachment	Size
Issue 50: A Matter of Political Space (April 2016)	1.06 MB
Issue 49: Social Movements (January '16)	1.22 MB
Issue 48: Peace, Security and Democratic Resilience (August '15)	818.41 KB
Issue 47: Integration (April '15)	1011.57 KB
Issue 46: The Infomediary Role of NDI Partners (Jan. '15)	339.19 KB
Issue 45: The Role of Dialogue in Deepening Democracy (Sept. '14)	1.84 MB
Issue 44: Taking Advantage of Political Entry Points to Improve Meaningful Engagement (May '14)	1.12 MB
Issue 43: Political Inclusion of LGBT Population (Jan. '14)	1.43 MB
Issue 42: Radio as an Effective Communication Tool (Aug. '13)	1.48 MB
Issue 41: The Use of ICT to Enhance Citizen Participation (May '13)	1.57 MB
Issue 40: Supporting Inclusion of Marginalized Ethnic and Religious Groups (Dec. '12)	1.87 MB
Issue 39: Public Opinion Research (Sept. '12)	1.69 MB
Issue 38: Youth Programming (May '12)	1.83 MB
Issue 37: Mainstreaming Persons with Disabilities (Jan. '12)	1.72 MB
Issue 36: Organizational Development (May '11)	1.1 MB
Issue 35: GOTV, Voter Information & Voter Education (Jan. '11)	1.04 MB
Issue 34: Structuring and Maintaining Partnerships (Sept. '10)	306.87 KB
Issue 33: Political Process Monitoring (May '10)	419.89 KB
Issue 32: Defending Space for Citizen Participation (Aug. '09)	204.87 KB
Issue 31: Best Practices for Meaningful Citizen Engagement (April '09)	540.61 KB
Issue 30: Context Matters (Jan. '09)	311.87 KB
Issue 29: Voice, Space and Accountability (Aug. '08)	869.11 KB
Issue 28: Communications Tools (May '08)	207.88 KB
Issue 27: Using Information and Communications Techonologies (Jan. '08)	486.89 KB
Issue 26: Working with Marginalized Populations (Sept. '07)	283.24 KB
Issue 25: Ten Years of Civic Updates (July '07)	258.56 KB
Issue 24: Making Democracy Deliver (Feb. '07)	413.86 KB
Issue 23: Positive Partnerships with Local Groups (May '06)	268.06 KB
Issue 22: Political Activism for People with Disablities (Dec. '05)	458.7 KB
Issue 21: Local Fundraising and Volunteer Recruitment (July '05)	221.65 KB
Issue 20: Tips from NDI Practioners (April '05)	561.26 KB
Issue 19: Get Out The Vote (Dec. '04)	496.75 KB
Issue 18: Involving Youth in the Political Process (July '04)	277.27 KB
Issue 17: Monitoring as a Driver of Change (Feb. '04)	488.58 KB
Issue 16: Citizen Surveys and Other Organizing Tools (Nov. '03)	546.03 KB
Issue 15: Making University Connections (Aug. '03)	579.18 KB
Issue 14: Focus Groups (May '03)	334.74 KB
Issue 13: Civic Forum (Nov. '02)	279.56 KB
Issue 12: Coalition Building (Jan. '02)	195.45 KB
Issue 11: Assessment Methods (Aug. '01)	84.74 KB
Issue 10: Partnership Approaches (April '01)	109.87 KB
Issue 9: What's Voting All About? (Oct. '99)	82.5 KB
Issue 8: Global Seminar on Advocacy and Democracy Development (June '99)	481.85 KB
Issue 7: How Civic Programs Increase Women's Participation in Processes (Dec. '98)	962.34 KB
Issue 6: Post-Conflict and Ethnic Divided Societies (July '98)	120.75 KB
Issue 5: Assessing Programs (March '98)	81.99 KB
Issue 4: Training (Nov. '97)	98.85 KB
Issue 3: Resources and Communication (July '97)	74.43 KB
Issue 2: Advocacy (April '97)	94.31 KB
Issue 1: Program Highlights from Around the World (Feb. '97)	121.71 KB

Sandra Pepera

skincaid — Tue, 14 Apr 2015 18:41:17 +0000

Sandra Pepera is a career diplomat and international development professional. Before joining NDI as its director for Gender, Women and Democracy in 2014, she spent thirteen years as a senior officer at the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), including leading programs in the Caribbean, Rwanda-Burundi and Sudan. Prior to joining DFID, Sandra spent time in British domestic politics; lecturing in political science and international relations at the University of Ghana; and as a political analyst in the Political Affairs Division at the Commonwealth Secretariat. She has a portfolio of skills and experience which include strategy development, political and risk analysis, diplomacy, general management and corporate governance.

Much of Sandra’s career has been spent working in or on transitional economies, focusing on the building of resilient and inclusive institutions. She led work on women and politics at the University of Ghana and in outreach public policy during the period of intense and unstable political transition in the early 1990s. This included participating in a program that supported the ANC Women’s League during South Africa’s transition from apartheid to majority democratic rule in 1993.

Sandra is a member of the Cambridge Sustainability Leaders Network, the Royal Commonwealth Society, the Global Board Ready Women initiative, and the International Advisory Board of the Commonwealth Journal for International Affairs (the Round Table). She holds the Financial Times Diploma for Non-Executive Directors, and serves as a trustee for the pension fund of an intergovernmental organization.

Global Campaign to Open Legislatures Draws Broad Support

dleonard — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 16:43:59 +0000

Civic activists and government reformers in at least 30 countries rallied behind open legislatures to promote values of transparency, inclusion and participation in the lawmaking process during the first-ever Global Legislative Openness Week (GLOW) Sept. 15 to 25.

GLOW kicked off on the International Day of Democracy and was designed to help legislatures share tools and strategies for engaging their citizens, particularly tech-empowered youth. The week was organized by the Open Government Partnership (OGP)’s Legislative Openness Working Group, which is co-anchored by the Chilean Congress and NDI.

Montenegrin youth present a skit on democracy to a regional meeting of members of parliament and civil society organizations.

At OGP’s High-Level Event on the margins of the UN General Assembly Sept. 24, President Enrique Peña Nieto of Mexico, which now holds the chairmanship of OGP, noted parliamentary openness as among its priorities: "a fin de que más reformadores puedan colaborar en un mayor número de ámbitos, impulsaremos iniciativas de Parlamento abierto..." ("so that more reformers can collaborate on a larger number of issues, we will promote initiatives on open parliament ...")

Events organized in conjunction with GLOW showcased the diversity of the global open-government movement and demonstrated that every society can take action toward openness, although institutional structures and technological capacities vary widely. Here are just a few of the events organized as part of GLOW:

Serbian civil society organization Otvoreni Parlament organized “Yes to Open Parliament” street actions in six cities.

In Montenegro, the OGP Legislative Openness Working Group and the Parliament of Montenegro held a two-day meeting to explore issues of legislative openness and how they can be advanced through the OGP process. The meeting, which featured members of parliament, parliamentary staffers, and civil society representatives from 15 countries, helped strengthen relationships among those groups around issues of legislative openness.
In Jordan, the speaker of parliament met with the Al Hayat Center for Civil Society Development to receive a letter on the importance of open parliamentary data. Al Hayat also released issue briefs on legislative transparency topics, and organized a series of local meetings between members of parliament and their constituents.
In Mexico, the Senate, Chamber of Deputies and Federal Institute for Access to Public Information and Data Protection (IFAI) joined civil society organizations in launching the Open Parliament Alliance, an institutional platform that will coordinate efforts to strengthen transparency, accountability and citizen participation.
In South Africa, the People’s Assembly website released an infographic measuring the South African Parliament’s progress against benchmarks based on the Declaration on Parliamentary Openness.
In Australia, the Open Australia Foundation invited local coders to work with parliamentary data during a weekend civic-hacking event. The ‘hackfest’ attracted more than 45 participants and generated a record 18 pull requests. Civil society organizations in Israel and Denmark also organized workshops around parliamentary data.
In Guatemala, the International Republican Institute organized a video teleconference with open-data experts in Mexico to discuss how legislators and civil society can use open data to promote accountability and stronger governance. The audience in Guatemala included members of congressional commissions, civil society groups working on transparency and OGP commitments, and university students.
In Serbia, Otvoreni Parlament organized a series of “Yes to Open Parliament” street actions in six cities.
In Brazil, the Hacker Lab of the Chamber of Deputies hosted a hacker weekend for experts and software developers to propose ideas and showcase projects aimed at legislative transparency -- including Olho nas Emendas (Eye on Amendments) and Vigia Político (Politicswatch).
In Poland, Gdansk Mayor Paweł Adamowicz recorded a video in support of GLOW, and the Lech Walesa Institute organized a Code for Freedom civic hackathon in partnership with ePanstwo Foundation and Teplitsa.
In Chile, the OGP Legislative Openness Working Group hosted its first global meeting. Members of the working group shared recent developments in parliamentary openness and drafted recommendations to the OGP Steering Committee for incorporating parliaments more effectively into the OGP process. This meeting occurred alongside the ParlAmericas Plenary Assembly, which included discussions of open parliaments on its agenda.
In six countries across Latin America, the Latin American Network for Legislative Transparency presented its second Index on Legislative Transparency.
Around the world, more than 100 parliamentary monitoring organizations signed onto an advocacy letter written by the Sunlight Foundation, which calls for parliamentary data to be open by default.

In addition to these events and several others, hundreds of individuals and organizations broadcast their support for GLOW on social media. The speaker of the UK House of Commons, Rt. Hon. John Bercow, recorded a video message for the meetings in Chile and Montenegro, both of which included representation from the Speaker’s Commission on Digital Democracy. Others weighing in to support legislative openness included NDI’s Chairman Madeleine K. Albright, U.S. Representative Darrell Issa, Mexican Senator Arely Gómez González and New South Wales (Australia) Legislative Council Member Penny Sharpe, who expressed their support for GLOW on Twitter. In all, the #OpenParl2014 hashtag has been used in over 3,700 tweets. Visit openparl2014.org for more details about the week’s events.

Read more:

Published Sept. 30, 2014

Opening the People’s House: Governments and citizens collaborate to build more transparent, inclusive parliaments

Thu, 11 Sep 2014 02:09:10 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

09/09/2014

Resource Type:

Press Release

Language:

English

In conjunction with the International Day of Democracy on Sept. 15, lawmakers and citizen watchdogs in more than a dozen countries will work together to open up and modernize a quintessential democratic institution: the legislature. The goal, organizers say, is to ensure that core democratic functions like lawmaking and government oversight are as transparent and inclusive as possible.

Global Legislative Openness Week (GLOW), from Sept. 15-25, will involve a series of related activities in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chile, Guatemala, Israel, Jordan, Mexico, Montenegro, Poland and elsewhere. The campaign will use a common hashtag (#OpenParl2014) and is spearheaded by the Legislative Openness Working Group of the Open Government Partnership, a multilateral initiative with 64 participating countries.

September 8, 2014
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Kathy Gest, National Democratic Institute, (202) 728-5535

Global Legislative Openness Week (GLOW), from Sept. 15-25, will involve a series of related activities in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chile, Guatemala, Israel, Jordan, Mexico, Montenegro, Poland and elsewhere. The campaign will use a common hashtag (#OpenParl2014) and is spearheaded by the Legislative Openness Working Group of the Open Government Partnership, a multilateral initiative with 64 participating countries.

Global Legislative Openness Week
September 15-25, 2014

Who: The Legislative Openness Working Group of the Open Government Partnership, and members of the global community of parliamentary monitoring organizations.

What: A series of events and activities to promote transparent, inclusive parliaments.

Where: #OpenParl2014 and OpenParl2014.org with in-person events in Montenegro, Chile, Poland, Australia, Canada, Mexico and elsewhere.

More information: OpenParl2014.org

“Having an open legislature means that we can adapt to social and technological changes, respond to citizen demands and stay close to the people who elect us,” Chilean Senator Hernán Larraín said. “Providing more information and expanding citizen participation, in a deliberate and meaningful way, will make legislatures more effective and help us to ensure that democracy works to deliver solutions to the problems citizens face in their daily lives.”

Chile was the first partnership country to create a national action plan focused on legislative openness--a model that the working group is encouraging other parliaments to follow. The Congress of Chile will conclude GLOW by hosting the working group’s annual meeting Sept. 25-26, with a focus on institutionalizing openness.

“Young activists, government reformers and civic technologists have begun tackling social problems with enormous energy and talent, but we know that institutional change also requires stamina and organization,” said Scott Hubli, director of governance at the National Democratic Institute (NDI). “All sides need to work together to build consensus, identify opportunities and chart a practical course forward, and that’s what GLOW is all about.”

The Congress of Chile and NDI serve as co-chairs of the working group, which was formed in 2013 to expand the scope of commitments made by Open Government Partnership countries.

GLOW Events Include

Sept. 15-16, Podgorica, Montenegro
Legislative Openness Working Group Regional Meeting: Expanding Civic Engagement through Parliamentary Openness
Sept 20-21, Sydney, Australia
Hackfest - GLOW Edition
Sept. 23, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Presentation of the second Index on Legislative Transparency
Sept. 25-26, Valparaiso, Chile
Legislative Openness Working Group Annual Meeting: Institutionalizing the Open Parliament Agenda

Opening Parliamentary Data

The Congress of Chile and NDI serve as co-chairs of the working group, which was formed in 2013 to expand the scope of commitments made by Open Government Partnership countries.

The Legislative Openness Working Group of the Open Government Partnership aims to deepen the exchange of knowledge across governments, parliaments, civil society and international institutions in the development and enactment of of commitments on legislative openness. For more information, visit opengovpartnership.org.

English

Attachment	Size
GLOWpressrelease.pdf	372.14 KB

NDI Policy Development Manual (Montenegro)

jcradit — Mon, 09 Jun 2014 17:41:43 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

02/01/2008

Resource Type:

Manual

Language:

English

Attachment	Size
Download the manual	973.79 KB

Empowering Women for Stronger Political Parties: A Good Practices Guide to Promote Women's Political Participation (Now available in Burmese)

fstovall — Fri, 21 Mar 2014 14:31:07 +0000

Author:

Julie Ballington

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute United Nations Development Programme

Published Date:

10/31/2011

Resource Type:

Manual|Handbook

Language:

Arabic, Burmese, English, French, Russian, Spanish, Urdu

English

Arabic

French

Spanish

Russian

Urdu

Attachment	Size
Read the manual (English)	2.49 MB
Read the manual with case studies (English)	3.45 MB
Read the manual (Arabic)	1.9 MB
Download the poster (Arabic)	1.18 MB
Read the manual (Burmese)	4.59 MB
Read the manual (French)	2.57 MB
Download the poster (French)	670.54 KB
Read the manual (Russian)	2.82 MB
Download the poster (Russian)	256.16 KB
Read the manual (Spanish)	2.59 MB
Download the poster (Spanish)	680.95 KB
Read the manual (Urdu)	3.74 MB
Read the manual with case studies (Albanian)	10.91 MB

Equal Access: How to Include Persons with Disabilities in Elections and Political Processes

dleonard — Thu, 06 Mar 2014 14:59:44 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute, International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES)

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

03/06/2014

Resource Type:

Manual|Handbook

Language:

Arabic, English, French, Indonesian, Russian, Spanish, Uzbek

English

Arabic

Spanish

Russian

Attachment	Size
Download the manual in Arabic	2.54 MB
Download the manual in English	3.24 MB
Download the manual in French	2.36 MB
Download the manual in Indonesian	16.34 MB
Download the manual in Russian	2.37 MB
Download the manual in Spanish	16.87 MB
Download the manual in Uzbek	3.85 MB

Increasing Women’s Political Participation Through Effective Training Programs: A Guide to Best Practices and Lessons Learned

fstovall — Tue, 12 Nov 2013 20:08:23 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

10/23/2013

Resource Type:

Training Manual

Language:

Arabic, English, French, Russian, Spanish

English

Arabic

French

Spanish

Russian

Attachment	Size
Download the manual (English)	994.16 KB
Download the manual (français)	1.02 MB
Download the manual (РУС)	1.31 MB
Download the manual (español)	1.08 MB
Download the manual (بالعربية)	787.23 KB

Declaration of Global Principles for Nonpartisan Election Observation and Monitoring by Citizen Organizations and Code of Conduct for Nonpartisan Citizen Election Observers and Monitors

fstovall — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 19:06:44 +0000

Publisher:

United Nations

Published Date:

04/03/2012

Resource Type:

Declaration

Language:

Arabic, Bangla, English, French, Mongolian, Romanian Russian, Spanish

English

Arabic

French

Spanish

Romanian

Russian

Attachment	Size
Read the declaration (Arabic)	267.58 KB
Read the declaration (English)	897.79 KB
Read the declaration (Bangla)	8.27 MB
Read the declaration (Burmese)	302.33 KB
Read the declaration (French)	327.02 KB
Read the declaration (Indonesian)	16.61 MB
Read the declaration (Mongolian)	345.97 KB
Read the declaration (Romanian)	275.41 KB
Read the declaration (Russian)	286.22 KB
Read the declaration (Spanish)	326.57 KB
Read the declaration (Urdu)	370.99 KB

NDI E-news: Egypt, Kosovo, Sudan | Dec. 2010

fstovall — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 20:01:11 +0000

December 2010

Local Partners Work to Bring Accountability to Elections

STAY CONNECTED

CONTRIBUTE

Egyptian candidate debate organized by Partners in Change.

Millions of citizens around the world, sometimes at great personal risk, work to safeguard elections in their countries by monitoring, reporting on and helping citizens participate in all aspects of the elections process. NDI regularly supports and works with many of these individuals and organizations as they seek to deter and expose fraud, ensure voters' rights and shine a light on sometimes secretive government procedures. Here are some examples:

In Egypt, which recently held elections for its lower house of parliament, the Institute worked with the Egyptian Association for the Support of Democracy (EASD) to train and deploy 5,000 observers who documented fraud, violence and election law violations. Using text messaging technology, EASD monitors reported real time information from polling stations that was posted to
the organization's website, drawing a local and international audience of more than 30,000 people. Another NDI partner in Egypt, Partners in Change, sponsored debates and street theater performances as part of get-out-the-vote efforts in the run-up to the elections. The events educated voters on the importance of voting and provided forums for voters to hear from individual candidates about their platforms.

Recent
parliamentary elections in Kosovo were generally peaceful, but some irregularities will need to be investigated more fully, according to a
preliminary statement from the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO), an international election observation group. ENEMO fielded 12 long-term observers and 188 election day observers from 23 countries, including 37 American observers organized by NDI, who monitored 861 polling stations.

SuNDE observers attend a training session on the voter registration process.

The voter registration process has just ended in Sudan, which is preparing for a referendum that will determine whether the southern part of the country secedes from the north. The Sudanese Network for Democratic Elections (SuNDE) and the Sudanese Group for Democracy and Elections (SuGDE), both nonpartisan coalitions of civil society groups and NDI partners, are monitoring all steps of the referendum, including the registration process. Seven hundred SuNDE and SuGDE observers monitored registration centers in both the north and south and in five of the eight international registration centers. The groups
released a joint statement saying registration "was conducted free from violations
that could significantly impact the integrity of the process, despite some shortcomings."

Before Peru's Dec. 5 run-off elections for department presidents (similar to state governors), NDI's civic partner, Transparencia, organized, recorded and broadcast debates
among the top candidates on radio and television. The debates aimed to help citizens become more informed about the candidates’ election platforms and compare their leadership styles. Now, in the wake of the elections, NDI is collaborating with Cuidadanos al Dia, a government watchdog group, to create a website where citizens can track how well the newly-elected officials live up to their campaign promises.

Nicaragua Leadership Program Supports Emerging Leaders

In Nicaragua, where opionion research shows young people increasingly dissatisfied with political parties and institutions, a consortium of academic institutions has created a new program to help engage the next generation in the political process. Young men and women from 49 civic organizations and 10 of the country's major political parties and movements are earning a Certificate on Leadership and Political Management focusing on democratic values and leadership. By providing this type of training, which will be expanded in the coming years, the certificate aims to empower the part of the population with the greatest potential for political involvement. NDI helped organize the consortium. Read more»

Montenegrin Ministries Changing the Way they Approach Policy Making

Scott Persons, NDI's resident director in Montenegro, discusses the Institute's work with government ministries to improve their internal and external communications. The program has resulted in more community input on how to solve problems facing the country and more efficient operations within the ministries. Read more»

Electoral Reform Needed to Build Public Confidence in Afghan Electoral Process and Political Institutions

As Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission released the final results for the Sept. 18 parliamentary elections, NDI called for a formal and comprehensive review of the country's electoral system that would lead to reforms. Noting systemic flaws and tensions resulting from credible allegations of fraud and other irregularities, the Institute said that without electoral reform, public confidence in Afghan elections and governance will continue to erode. Read more»

Election Commission Chair Pledges Best Effort to Improve Elections in Nigeria in 2011

A legacy of electoral fraud, political violence and stalled democratic development has marred the past decade of civilian rule in Nigeria, which is planning for elections in 2011. Speaking at NDI, Attahiru Jega, the new chairman of Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission, said that improving the electoral process is vital to the country's democratic development and noted the growing consensus on the need for credible elections. NDI President Kenneth Wollack noted that with Jega's appointment "hope has replaced pessimism" regarding upcoming polls. Read more»

Women Win, Lead in Jordan and Southern Africa

Jordanian women candidates enjoyed record levels of success in the country's Nov. 9 parliamentary elections. For the first time, a woman candidate from Amman won her seat outside of the country's quota system; six of Jordan's 12 governorates elected the first women from their regions; and, for the first time, a Bedouin woman was elected. Jordan's new election law doubled the number of seats reserved for women from six to 12. The increase, coupled with the additional woman candidate who won outside the quota, will bring to 10.8 percent the number of women in parliament. Read more»

In southern Africa, women's political participation in Zambia and Lesotho lags behind other countries in the region. Women from both countries have participated in an NDI leadership academy where they learn campaign, advocacy and public speaking skills, and practice techniques to build coalitions and raise funds. Participants will use these skills in upcoming local and national elections. Read more»

2011 World Press Freedom Day to be Held in U.S. for the First Time

NDI has joined a number of democracy, human rights and free press organizations in the preparations for World Press Freedom Day, which will be held in Washington, D.C., May 1-3, 2011. The events will focus on media freedom in the digital age. More than 20 organizations working to advance free expression worldwide are collaborating with the U.S. Department of State and UNESCO to plan the program, 21st Century Media: New Frontiers, New Barriers. Read more»

Montenegrin Ministries Changing the Way They Approach Policy Making

rrunyan — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 19:30:24 +0000

Full integration into Europe – through membership in the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization – is high on the agenda for Montenegro. But certain membership requirements still must be fulfilled.

One area that government ministries are addressing is communication with the parliament, municipal governments and civil society, and they have asked NDI for help. The Institute was approached by the minister of environment and spatial planning for help with internal communication and external outreach. Scott Persons, NDI’s resident director in Montenegro, explains how NDI is helping.

Full integration into Europe – through membership in the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) – is high on the agenda for Montenegro. But certain membership requirements still must be fulfilled.

One area that government ministries are addressing is communication with the parliament, municipal governments and civil society, and they have asked NDI for help. The Institute, which has been working in Montenegro for more than 10 years on political party development, election reform and parliamentary strengthening, was approached by the minister of environment and spatial planning for help with internal communication and external outreach.

That program has now expanded to other ministries, including the Ministry of Interior and Public Administration and the Ministry of Finance. Scott Persons, NDI’s resident director in Montenegro, explains how the Institute’s program works.

Listen to Scott explain how the ministry program got started.

What is the biggest challenge Montenegro currently faces?

The country is one of the smallest in Europe with a population of 650,000 and has only been independent since 2006. Since it has chosen to pursue membership in the EU as its top priority, the country must undergo a series of challenging reforms to achieve this goal. The ministries have found that their legacy approach to policy making is not as inclusive as it needs to be. All too often, government officials are surprised when they encounter strong citizen opposition to policies that were formed without citizen input.

How does our programming help to make the government more cohesive?

The NDI governance program in Montenegro was developed to help bring about a more open and accountable process and to give government officials the tools they need to develop a more inclusive policy-making process that considers varying interests at the beginning of the process. NDI offers ministry staff training in strategic thinking and planning techniques to help staff understand the importance of identifying a policy agenda and planning a policy development process that includes interested parties, such as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), municipalities and the parliament throughout the process. Overwhelmingly, our partners feel empowered by the techniques we’ve shared and, more importantly, they realize that treating stakeholders as partners in policymaking, rather than adversaries, makes their work more effective in the end.

How does the program benefit citizens?

The program prioritizes serving citizens first. For example, several years ago the government passed a law allowing seven municipalities to establish regional landfills to address a critical problem in Montenegro: waste management However, the law was passed by the government without consulting the municipalities that would need to host these landfills. The municipalities proved unable to implement the law and deliver a critical need in these communities, which created very frustrated citizens. After a series of NDI seminars, the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning recently convened a workshop composed of municipal representatives, the Union of Municipalities, as well as stakeholders from the communal services and business community to discuss their frustrations with the current law. The work group created joint amendments to the Law on Waste Management to remedy the situation in addition to proposing changes to the Law on Communal Services. This working group represented a completely new approach of inclusive policy making that was based on the principles introduced at NDI seminars with the ministry.

Also, the Ministry of Finance has improved its communication with ministries during the budget process. As they develop the budget, they are doing a better job of including language that explains how the government plans to spend tax revenue in the coming year and why these expenditures are beneficial. During this process they ask each of the ministries to provide clear explanations of how the budget expenditures of each ministry benefits citizens. This information will also be helpful to the parliament during the budget adoption process and will allow it to be more active on budget oversight.

How is the program structured?

We have had a number of seminars and workshops with our ministry partners to help them with strategic planning, internal management and communication. We also held a session on message development and identity for the ministries. We thought it was important to identify goals and define the mission of the respective ministry. One workshop with the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning focused on developing its agenda for the upcoming year, and how the ministry would engage people throughout the year on the policy issues that it will consider. We also helped this ministry introduce an internal newsletter to communicate how its policy agenda complements its stated goal of sustainable development.

We brought in trainers from Croatia and Serbia to work with members of different ministries on coordinating with civil society. It is constructive for Montenegrins to be able to hear from people from another country about how their government has made them feel more included in the policy making process over time and what they expect of their government. By taking the local politics out of the discussion, true best practice sharing takes place and offers more insight. It allows ministry employees to consider the importance of positive interaction and how their policies can improve by engaging with civil society.

What is the component that is seeking to improve communication between the ministries and parliament?

The ministries want to be able to develop improved briefing packets – small reports that summarize a particular piece of legislation for MPs that sit on the policy and oversight committees. These packets help to inform the parliament, particularly the opposition party, about policy and development issues in an effort to build consensus around what needs to be done. At our final seminar early next year with the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning, we will be inviting members of parliament who sit on the environment committee to attend, along with environmental NGOs, to discuss how the ministry can improve and systematize its outreach process.

What is the difference between doing parliamentary assistance, as NDI has done for some time in Montenegro, and working with the ministries?

Some elements have definitely crossed over. Early on, we were working more on basic management, organizational and time management skills needed at a staff level in any branch of government. But I think a ministry is different from a parliament because there is much more of a unified structure that enables a ministry to implement assistance more quickly. Parliaments are designed to be deliberative bodies and you have all the party caucuses and the speaker’s office, where the respective actors are managing different political expectations. A ministry does have political dimensions, but it is much more focused around a set of issues.

What is the long-term impact of a program like this?

In Montenegro, we are fostering skills and developing processes with our partners that can be replicated for any policy issue whether working in policy development, team management, coordination with the parliament, or correspondence with the community. We are also hearing positive feedback from NGOs and citizens that interact with these ministries that they have noticed a more open and cooperative partner than before. Those are some of the examples of the developments and improvements we hope to leave as our legacy.

Looking beyond Montenegro, I think this is an important piece of the whole democracy development process, as decisions are made by the executive branch in parliamentary democracies. Parliament has an important role to play in terms of policy development and oversight, but who is the first person to tackle a policy issue? It is somebody or a group of people in the ministry. Whatever the policy may be and how that policy development starts is crucial in the whole process of democracy. I think this is a natural complement to the work NDI has been doing throughout the world.

Pictured Above: Scott Persons, NDI’s resident director in Montenegro

Published December 1, 2010

NDI E-news: Colombia, Haiti, Ukraine, Bahrain | Feb. 2010

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 21:20:53 +0000

February 2010

Chocó Women Win 2009 Madeleine K. Albright Grant

The Departmental Network of Chocó Women of Colombia (Red Departmental de Mujeres Chocoanas) has been chosen by NDI to receive the 2009 Madeleine K. Albright Grant for its work to create greater roles for women in the region's civil and political life.

The network is an umbrella group of 52 civic organizations from 18 towns in the primarily Afro-Colombian department of Chocó in the western part of the country. It will receive $25,000 for a political training school and to create a network of women political leaders in Chocó. Both will further the organization’s mission: to help Chocoan women achieve greater equality between the sexes and encourage women’s political participation. Read more»

NDI established the Madeleine K. Albright Grant in 2005 to support organizations that create greater roles for women in political and civic life. Winners are selected from a competitive pool of applicants seeking to promote women's political participation. Past recipients include the Women’s League of Burma, the Indonesian Women’s Political Caucus (KPPI), the Mostar Women’s Citizen Initiative of Bosnia-Herzegovina and the 50/50 Group of Sierra Leone.

The Madeleine K. Albright Grant is made possible through the generosity of the Melvin and Bren Simon Foundation.

Initiative Committees Working to Distribute Aid and Information in Haiti

The 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on Jan. 12 brought suffering and destruction to a country that was already facing major development challenges. The situation on the ground changes daily as Haitian and international relief efforts try to help the millions of citizens who now lack food, water, medical care and shelter.

In response, members of a Haitian network of community organizing groups, or Initiative Committees (ICs), are mobilizing to support national and international relief efforts. Developed over more than a decade with NDI support, the ICs are present in 179 municipalities across the country and involve 35,000 Haitians and 3,500 civic organizations, including 400 women's groups.

African Experts Lay Out Recommendations for Credible Elections

Election experts and practitioners from 25 African nations meeting in Ghana last November called for the ratification of the African Union's charter on elections and enforcement of its standards to achieve more peaceful and credible elections on the continent.

The gathering, organized by NDI and nine other organizations, issued a communiqué with recommendations for standards that could mitigate conflict and improve election processes.

Ghana was chosen as the site for the colloquium because of its successful 2008 elections, which were considered credible, despite heated political tensions and a razor-thin margin between the presidential candidates.

NDI Launches Website That Adds Transparency to Afghanistan Election Data

NDI has launched an innovative online mapping tool for analyzing election data from Afghanistan's flawed Aug. 20 presidential and provincial council elections. Designed to make the data more accessible and transparent, the site uses demographic, ethnographic, topographic and security information. The tool also identifies areas that had significant electoral irregularities.

Using a data browser that provides tools to manage a series of maps, filters and overlays, the site provides numerous ways to segment and visualize raw vote count data. Visitors can run customized queries with the results displayed as lists, charts and maps. The website uses all open source software and makes the data easily available for download in CSV format.

NDI Partner Groups Commend Ukrainian Elections, Offer Recommendations for Sunday's Runoff

After the Jan. 17 Ukrainian presidential election, two NDI partner groups that had observed the election issued statements hailing the vote as an improvement over the 2004 presidential poll but also citing shortcomings that they said should be addressed before the runoff on Feb. 7.

Both Opora and ENEMO highlighted procedural and organizational problems with the vote, including updates made to the voter lists on election day and uneven enforcement of provisions regarding mobile voting (voting from home). Both groups directed their recommendations to the Central Election Commission, which has jurisdiction over the issues.

Youth Leaders Declaration from Belgrade Summit Seeks Regional Cooperation and Peace

With the goals of increasing communication and fostering a network of politically active youth across Europe, NDI co-sponsored a three-day summit in Belgrade that brought together young people from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia to address issues of war crimes, rule of law, discrimination and xenophobia.

On the final day of the summit, the group released "The Belgrade Declaration," which pledged to strengthen their ties with their governments, promote new political values and use new technologies to improve communication and understanding.

Bahrain Women’s Union Calls for Action on Domestic Violence Law

The Bahrain Women's Union (BWU) launched an advocacy campaign last month calling for a law against domestic violence. The campaign kicked off with a march to demonstrate public support for addressing the issue, followed by a roundtable for MPs to discuss the cultural roots of domestic violence and ways to legislate against it. The Kingdom currently has no laws or government policies to address domestic violence, despite the fact that it has seen a sharp increase in domestic violence reports over the last four years.

Before the launch of the campaign, NDI worked with the activists to refine their advocacy plan and strategy for reaching key decision makers and allies.

The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide by promoting citizen participation, openness and accountability in government.

NDI E-news: African Elections, Serbia, Cambodia | June 2010

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 21:11:19 +0000

June 2010

Delegations Praise, Suggest Improvements for African Elections

Keith Jennings, NDI's Southern and East Africa regional director, and Ambassador Nora Schimming-Chase of Namibia present the delegation's findings in Tanzania.

Elections do not begin and end on election day. Successful polls require months of pre-election preparations by candidates, civil society, election commissions and domestic and international observer groups. Successful elections also require transparent counting procedures, a timely and fair adjudication of electoral complaints and a peaceful transfer of power.

In the pre-election periods in Tanzania and Guinea, NDI fielded delegations that assessed conditions and made recommendations to improve transparency, participation and fairness in upcoming elections.

In Tanzania, elections slated for October 2010 will be a milestone in the country's democratic development. The NDI delegation released a statement praising Tanzania's electoral process for its innovation and reform, but pointing out several aspects of the process that need to be strengthened. The delegation focused especially on a July 31 referendum that could enable Zanzibar to form a government of national unity. It also focused on the Election Expenses Act, which could exacerbate the resource imbalance between the government and opposition parties, and the voter registration process, which it said still requires significant improvements. Read more»

In Guinea, where the military junta is preparing to hand over power to a civilian government after the country's June 27 presidential election, members of the NDI delegation were optimistic that the election would be conducted peacefully. Their optimism was merited when the voting proceeded in what was initially seen as a largely peaceful and fair election. In a communiqué released prior to the vote, the delegation said, "The electoral campaign is being held without clashes and major incidents." Areas cited as needing improvement were the election commission's communications with the public as well as Guinea's security forces' role in the electoral process. Read more»

These two elections, in addition to upcoming polls in Rwanda, Kenya and Niger, underscore the value of the guidelines, recommendations and a sample of best practices included in a new report from last year's Ghana colloquium on African elections. The gathering was attended by more than 100 participants from 25 African nations. The report is available in both English and French.

Citizen Hotline Launched Ahead of Ugandan Elections

In an effort to curb electoral irregularities in Uganda, DEMGroup and the Citizens Coalition for Electoral Democracy (CCEDU), both domestic election monitoring organizations, are using technology.

They have put in place a citizen hotline that Ugandans can use to call or text in concerns about the integrity of the electoral process. The comments are being collected, organized and checked out by DEMGroup and CCEDU monitors and digitally mapped on a public website to add transparency to the voting process.

The project is being conducted in partnership with NDI.

In Serbia, Five Pillars for Strengthening Parliament

As the political situation in Serbia has stabilized, attention has shifted to operation of its parliament and the lawmakers' responsibilities to constituents. Rebecca Shoot, a resident program officer in NDI's Belgrade office, discusses the Institute's work helping parliamentarians engage with the electorate.

NDI Brings Together Parliamentary Monitoring Groups in Jakarta

The efforts of civil society organizations to monitor and assess the work of legislatures was the subject of a recent meeting of representatives of parliamentary monitoring organizations (PMO) at the Sixth Assembly of the World Movement for Democracy in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The findings of a project to identify and map PMOs around the world were presented at the conference, as was an introduction to the AGORA Portal for Parliamentary Development, an online resource for sharing parliamentary best practices.

Watch the Winning Videos!

You voted for your favorites, now see who won! The Democracy Video Challenge has announced its six winning filmmakers— from Ethiopia, Indonesia, Spain, Iran, Nepal and Colombia — who earned the most votes for their three-minute videos completing the phrase "democracy is..." The six will now visit New York, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles, where they will meet with representatives from government, democracy and other nongovernmental organizations, and the film and television industries.

Watch the winning videos»

Congress Looks to Women as Agents of Change

Women's meaningful participation in politics affects both the range of policy issues considered and the types of solutions that are proposed. In places such as Timor-Leste, Croatia, and South Africa, an increase in the number of female lawmakers has resulted in more legislation related to domestic violence, inheritance and security.

NDI President Kenneth Wollack testified about these gains at a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee hearing on "Women as Agents of Change: Advancing the Role of Women in Politics and Civil Society."

Read Wollack's testimony»

Constituents, Representatives Mix in Expanded Program in Cambodia

In Cambodia, members of the National Assembly have few chances to interact with constituents, and citizens rarely have an opportunity to express their views to their elected representatives in Phnom Penh. To address these challenges, NDI is expanding its constituency dialogue program as part of a five-year USAID-funded effort called Accountability in Governance and Politics. The dialogues are attended by 400 to 600 citizens and are similar to town hall meetings. Citizens can speak to and ask questions of their elected representatives.

Analysis: Signs of Optimism in the Balkans

Efforts in the Balkans to turn the page on a troubled past and look to democratic rule as a foundation for political stability are having an effect, according to Robert Benjamin, NDI's regional director for Central and Eastern Europe. In a recent talk, he discussed the outlook in the Western Balkans — Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia — and concluded that despite challenges the region is making real progress toward peace, stability and democracy.

"My optimistic message is that the region is stabilizing in ways we've never seen before," he said.

Read Benjamin's full remarks»

The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide through citizen participation, openness and accountability in government.

Analysis: Signs of Optimism in the Balkans

fstovall — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 15:01:24 +0000

The Western Balkans — Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia — face ethnic divisions and other political, economic and social problems that continue to challenge stability in the wake of the violent conflicts of the 1990s. But people in the region are seeking to turn the page on a troubled past and look to democratic rule as the foundation for political stability and integration into the European Union and NATO.

Robert Benjamin, NDI's regional director for Central and Eastern Europe, recently discussed political stability in the Western Balkans at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. While Benjamin points to remaining challenges, overall he believes the region is making real progress toward peace, stability and democracy.

Here are excerpts from his remarks.

"My optimistic message is that the region is stabilizing in ways we've not seen before.

"First, for as problematic and destabilizing as the region's core issues are — principally between Serbia and Kosovo on the latter's independence and on Bosnia — the threat of armed conflict has been measurably reduced and perhaps altogether removed. Governments have eschewed militaristic policies, the armed forces are among the most reformed institutions in the region, and the international structures on the ground — both governmental and military — have ensured peace.

"Second, at a political level, there are increasing signs of cooperation between capitals. Most notably, Belgrade and Zagreb are cooperating on a host of bilateral issues, and both are proving themselves generally constructive in their relations with next-door Bosnia. For their size and prominence, Serbia and Croatia in many respects drive the region; the health of their relations sets a tone that others take their cues from. Turkey's recent diplomatic overtures involving Belgrade and Sarajevo, concurrent with what appears to be a bid for stronger economic ties with Serbia, are also welcome. Albania and Serbia are growing closer, as witnessed by the recent visit to Belgrade — and importantly, south Serbia — by Albania's deputy prime minister. Macedonia's and Montenegro's respective diplomatic recognitions of Kosovo, done not without measurable political risk at home — have also contributed to stability.

"Third, the region was conferred a "European perspective" at the 2003 EU Thessaloniki Summit, and is on track to incorporate into the European Union. Most will find their way into NATO, as Croatia and Albania have already done. For Brussels and Washington, the Balkans represent the remaining piece of the European puzzle. And for the Balkans, EU accession and NATO membership provide the ultimate security blanket. So the mutual interest is there. This year's EU visa liberalization for three of the countries, with Bosnia possibly on deck, and NATO's consideration of Membership Action Plan (MAP) status for Bosnia, help people in the Balkans look forward, not to the past.

"Fourth, even the most longstanding and intractable problems the region confronts — conflict between Serbia and Kosovo over the latter's independence, Bosnia's inability to cohere a functional system of government, and Macedonia's persistent name conflict with Greece — are playing out in an environment where they don't represent the existential threats they might have once did. For all of its vituperation, Belgrade insists that it will pursue its Kosovo policy through peaceful recourse to international law. Bosnia's situation, though politically dire, is not hitting up to the level of renewed conflict, and Athens and Skopje are circling around potential formulas concerning a workable solution to the name conflict, although, to be sure, domestic politics in either country do not necessarily favor a quick resolution.

"Finally, buttressing all of this is public opinion in the region. People don't want to go back. They want to get on with things. In poll after poll, jobs and the economy, not interethnic relations or territorial issues, top the list by a wide margin.

"Lest I sound too sanguine, and at the risk of contradicting myself, let me dent this optimistic scenario by mentioning some challenges and complications — although I still retain my core optimism."

Read the full text»

Published on June 4, 2010

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Montenegrin Ministries Changing the Way They Approach Policy Making

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NDI E-news: Colombia, Haiti, Ukraine, Bahrain | Feb. 2010

February 2010

NDI E-news: African Elections, Serbia, Cambodia | June 2010

June 2010

Delegations Praise, Suggest Improvements for African Elections

Analysis: Signs of Optimism in the Balkans