NDI - Sierra Leone

National Democratic Institute Schools Female Politicians | April 30, 2012

fgalleto — Tue, 01 May 2012 18:03:20 +0000

Female aspirants for the November 17th General Elections drawn from all four Districts of Bo, Moyamba, Pujehun and Bonthe have benefited from a two day training under the sponsorship of the National Democratic Institute.

The training, which was held from Monday April 23rd to Tuesday 24TH at the Sahara Hotel in Bo, was aimed at meaningful participation of women in National, Local and Community leadership role, has become an important focus of global development policy.

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Political Parties in Sierra Leone Pledge Open, Safe, Inclusive Elections

fgalleto — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 16:14:05 +0000

All of Sierra Leone’s eight registered political parties have signed an “Open and Safe Elections Pledge” to promote an electoral atmosphere free of violence and intimidation and to encourage women to participate in the election process. The country is slated to have presidential, parliamentary and local elections on Nov. 17.

The pledge is in part a response to interparty violence, which had begun to cast a shadow on the Nov. 17 polls. Last September, youth from the ruling All People’s Congress (APC) threw stones at the presidential candidate of a major opposition party, the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP). SLPP youth responded by torching APC party offices. The violence spread to include an assault on a local APC chairwoman, and young supporters of both parties attacked each other during a January by-election. Tensions between the parties remain high.

Sulaiman Bai Sesay, secretary general of the United Democratic Movement (UDM), signs the pledge. UDM is one of eight signatories to the pledge.

The fear that violence will escalate during the campaign season has kept some citizens, particularly women, from running for office. But parties hope to change that with the pledge, which was developed by a coalition of civil society organizations with input from the political parties and support from NDI.

Alhaji Mohamed Warisay, the national coordinator of Democracy Sierra Leone, one of the groups in the coalition that drafted the pledge, applauded the political party representatives for signing the pledge and urged them to include women, youth and persons with disabilities in candidate lists and as full partners in the political process.

Candidates are usually chosen by party leaders, and women are often passed over. Though they make up 52 percent of the population, women serve in less than 20 percent of elected posts. They have a hard time competing in politics because of poor access to campaign funding, traditional thinking that women should not hold public office, and harassment and intimidation by male opponents. Young people and the disabled face similar barriers. By signing the pledge, the parties agree to “empower our party’s women, youth and disabled candidates for parliament and local council with campaign, transportation and financial assistance.”

Patrick Taylor, president of the Sierra Leone Union on Disability Issues, lauded the pledge, which commits parties to pass within a year a policy promoting the political participation of people with disabilities. He urged the parties to create a disability wing to work toward the full participation of people with disabilities in parties and politics.

The pledge has provided a code of conduct that civil society groups can use as they monitor how political parties have performed regarding women, youth and the disabled during the campaign period. The coalition members will meet with party leaders periodically to assess adherence to the pledge and recommend ways to improve compliance.

To spread awareness of the pledge among the general public, coalition members have been discussing it on national radio, and they presented each party with a laminated copy of the pledge to hang in their offices.

Related:

Published April 12, 2012

Sierra Leone Open and Safe Elections Pledge

fgalleto — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 16:11:26 +0000

Author:

50/50 Group et. al.

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

04/12/2012

Resource Type:

Code of conduct

Language:

English

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Sierra Leone: National Democratic Institute Calls for Women, Disabled Participation | Feb. 24, 2012

fgalleto — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 17:38:31 +0000

AllAfrica | Link to story »

The National Democratic Institute (NDI) yesterday urged political parties to involve women, youth and persons with disability in the forthcoming presidential, parliamentary and local council elections slated for November 17 this year.

The political parties that signed to the memorandum titled 'open and safe elections pledge' include the Peace and Liberation Party (PLP), the Citizens' Democratic Party (CDP), United Democratic Movement (UDM), the ruling All People's Congress (APC), the main opposition Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), National Democratic Alliance (NDA), People's Movement for Democratic Change (PMDC) and the Revolutionary United Front Party (RUFP).

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Parties Sign Open and Safe Elections Pledge | Nov. 3, 2011

fgalleto — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 15:34:15 +0000

Awoko | Link to story »

Four Political Parties: All Peoples’ Congress (APC), Sierra Leone Peoples’ Party (SLPP), People’s Movement for Democratic Change (PMDC) and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), yesterday signed an open and safe elections pledge in Freetown.

The signing of the pledge was coordinated by the 50/50 Group, Democracy Sierra Leone, Centre for Coordination of Youth Activities, Gender Empowerment, Sierra Leone Union on Disability Issues and the National Democratic Institute.

Link to story »

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Sierra Leone: Constituency Outreach: A Guide for Members of Parliament

fgalleto — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 20:36:41 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

08/18/2004

Resource Type:

Manual|Handbook

Language:

English

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Sierra Leone: Constituency Outreach: A Guide for Members of Parliament

fgalleto — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 20:57:54 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

08/18/2006

Resource Type:

Manual|Handbook

Language:

English

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Documentary on Sierra Leone's 50/50 Group to be Screened at Pan African Film Festival

fgalleto — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 17:37:08 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

01/28/2008

Resource Type:

Press Release

Language:

English

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NDI Works to Boost Women’s Participation in July Elections in Sierra Leone

fgalleto — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 18:44:42 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

05/29/2008

Resource Type:

Press Release

Language:

English

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NDI Supports Women's Participation in the Electoral Process; Calls for an End to the Alleged Intimidation of Women Candidates in Advance of July Local Government Elections in Sierra Leone

fgalleto — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 18:19:51 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

06/27/2008

Resource Type:

Press Release

Language:

English

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West Africa Election Observers Join Together to Promote Credible Elections

Mon, 28 Feb 2011 16:26:59 +0000

West African elections can run the democratic gamut. From the peaceful presidential polls held in Ghana in 2008 to the ongoing election-related standoff in Cote d’Ivoire, elections in the region have seen everything from successful transfers of power to ethnic tensions to widespread fraud. Citizen election observation groups from 11 countries have formed the West Africa Election Observers Network (WAEON) to help ensure accountability, increase honesty and accuracy, and instill confidence in legitimate election results in their countries.

Citizen election observation groups from 11 countries have formed the West Africa Election Observers Network (WAEON) to help ensure accountability, increase honesty and accuracy, and instill confidence in legitimate election results in their countries. WAEON’s goal is to enable observers from different countries in the sub-region to exchange ideas and recommendations for better approaches to observation. Comprised of independent, nonpartisan organizations, WAEON helps citizen observer groups in West Africa meet criteria set forth in the Declaration of Global Principles for Nonpartisan Election Observation and Monitoring by Citizen Organizations, an internationally recognized standard for election monitoring. NDI played a key role in the creation of WAEON by bringing together observer group representatives in a series of workshops on election best practices. Participants decided to form the network to help improve election monitoring in their countries.

In announcing its creation on Feb. 21, WAEON promised to “provide technical and moral support to its member organizations in order to encourage nonpartisan citizen election observation, champion electoral reforms and advocacy, and promote credible elections as a means of deepening electoral democracy in the sub region.”

The network will create a forum for information sharing among neighboring countries. Although international monitors have observed elections in the region since the 1970s, domestic groups have only recently taken on this task. The Jan. 31 elections in Niger and upcoming polls in Nigeria and Liberia provide observation opportunities for WAEON member groups. Network members also will have the chance to hear from counterparts in other countries, such as Ghana, that have conducted more advanced observation efforts based on statistical principles. Other WAEON goals are to increase the quality of observation across the region and improve the credibility of elections.

On Feb. 21 and 22, NDI sponsored a workshop with WAEON members on voter registration observation. Other activities include a series of exchange visits that give representatives from participating West African countries a chance to study how neighboring nations prepare for elections and tally votes. For example, WAEON members recently met with election administrators, government officials, and civil society representatives in Niger and Nigeria in the lead-up to their elections.

Related:

Pictured above: WAEON Treasurer Djeneba Kone Diarra of Mali and WAEON Chairperson Mashood Erubami of Nigeria at the launch of WAEON in Abuja, Nigeria, on Feb. 21, 2011.

Published on March 3, 2011

Global Domestic Election Monitoring Network Seeks to Share Experience

rrunyan — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 15:57:35 +0000

Millions of people around the world who have organized to monitor elections in their own countries often must brave difficult conditions and personal risk in a quest for responsive and transparent governance. While they share many goals and practices, they have not had a way, on their own, to connect with one another and benefit from the knowledge of their counterparts.

Enter the Global Network of Domestic Election Monitors, or GNDEM, born in 2009 and now connecting 140 member organizations from more than 60 countries. NDI spearheaded the effort to create GNDEM and currently manages the GNDEM.org website.

Sierra Leone domestic monitors watch vote count during 2007 elections.

Launched last summer, the site provides easy access to more than 1,000 documents grouped into 39 priority topics identified by members. The topics range from how to maintain credibility and impartiality during observations to media strategies and the nuts and bolts of how to monitor various processes before, during and after elections.

The site also includes the Declaration of Global Principles for Nonpartisan Election Observation and Monitoring by Citizen Organizations, which was written and agreed upon by GNDEM member organizations. The effort to create and maintain global standards for domestic monitoring is similar to standards developed for international election observation adopted in 2005 and endorsed by 36 nongovernmental and intergovernmental organizations.

“Citizen observation has become a movement. It’s not just a concept anymore.”

- Darko Aleksov, secretary general of the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations

The Global Principles set standards for citizen observers. They are a tool for advocating for more rights for observers and for observers to be able to exercise those rights, said Darko Aleksov, secretary general of the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO), which includes 22 monitoring groups from 16 countries in the former Soviet Union and Central and Eastern Europe.

“Citizen observation has become a movement. It’s not just a concept anymore,” Aleksov said. “Around eight million people in the world so far have been recruited, trained and deployed to be domestic observers on a voluntary basis. This [Global Principles] document is a product of what we have learned.”

Networks of monitoring groups from different regions in the world – including ENEMO, also a GNDEM member – have existed for some time to share experiences. But GNDEM is the first effort to bring these regional networks and individual groups together to share knowledge on a global scale.

“NDI has helped foster regional networks and connections among groups over its 25 years of assisting citizen election monitors in more than 75 countries,” said Pat Merloe, NDI’s director of electoral programs, and part of the idea behind GNDEM is to encourage greater direct peer-to-peer exchanges.

“Traditionally, NDI has been in the best position to share global developments in citizen election monitoring,” Merloe said. “For example, if monitoring election violence becomes important in a given country, we know that efforts in Sri Lanka, Guatemala and Zimbabwe provide useful models. We bring that knowledge to bear, often bringing activists together to share experiences or otherwise helping people make connections.”

Domestic monitors audit a voter list in Indonesia in 2008.

These types of linkages are now beginning to happen through GNDEM. The Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center in Azerbaijan and the Egyptian Association for the Support of Democracy, for example, have sought the network’s help in distributing reports and press releases, while a coalition of groups in Liberia has asked for feedback on its preparations for general elections next October. Organizations like the DEMGroup in Uganda and the Bahrainian Transparency Association have featured their online mapping tools with the GNDEM community, sharing how they have incorporated new technologies into their monitoring methodologies.

Regional networking is also enhanced through GNDEM. The Center for Democracy and Development (CDD) in Ghana, for example, which monitors issues from economic reform to conflict mitigation and plays a leading role in nonpartisan election monitoring, has worked with help from NDI over the last year to launch the West Africa Election Observation Network (WAEON), representing citizen election monitors from 11 countries. CDD-Ghana recently hosted a study mission from the Central African Republic’s coalition of election monitors, which was preparing to observe that country’s 2011 general elections.

Another GNDEM member, the Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections (LADE), aims to improve the Lebanese electoral system and reinforce democratic electoral practices. It is working with other organizations in the Middle East and North Africa to launch a citizen election monitoring network to enhance the impact of election integrity efforts in that region. Like CDD-Ghana, LADE participated in developing the Declaration of Global Principles.

“International observation has long been effective in bringing global attention to a particular election,” Merloe noted, “but it cannot provide the deeper political understanding that citizen monitors bring, nor can it leave the lasting, substantial impact that so many citizen groups have created. After all, elections are about citizens’ rights to participate in public affairs and to establish accountable, representative governance.”

This story was originally published in the Spring 2011 edition of NDI Reports. You can read the entire newsletter here: www.ndi.org/NDI-Reports-Spring-2011/index.html. Please visit NDI’s complete newsletter archive at www.ndi.org/newsletter_archive to read newsletters dating back to 1987.

The Youth Bulge in Africa - Opportunities for Constructive Engagement in the Political Process

fgalleto — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 19:17:55 +0000

Author:

Shari Bryan

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

10/27/2010

Resource Type:

Speech

Language:

English

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NDI Partners with Commonwealth Parliamentary Association to Strengthen Parliaments

fgalleto — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 20:42:06 +0000

NDI and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) have signed an agreement to collaborate on efforts to enhance representative government around the world. The association is a group of national and subnational legislatures of the Commonwealth, representing some two billion citizens from all faiths and ethnicities from six continents.

A memorandum of understanding was signed in Nairobi Sept. 8 by the secretary-general of the CPA, William F. Shija, and the president of NDI, Kenneth Wollack.

A memorandum of understanding was signed in Nairobi Sept. 8 by the secretary-general of the CPA, William F. Shija, and the president of NDI, Kenneth Wollack. Shija attended the signing ceremony in advance of the 56th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference hosted by the Kenyan Parliament. Wollack was in Nairobi attending NDI's first board meeting held outside the United States. NDI Board member Tom Daschle, former U.S. Senate majority leader, also participated in the ceremony.

NDI and CPA will continue to work together to develop and promote the use of the CPA's "Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures," a guide to good parliamentary practice developed in 2006 by a CPA Study Group that drew on a number of technical inputs, including an NDI discussion document. The CPA benchmarks are being used around the world to help parliaments self-assess their procedures and processes to identify areas where democratic governance can be improved.

Wollack and Daschle noted NDI's past successful cooperation with the CPA and looked forward to additional partnership at the global level and in Commonwealth parliaments where NDI has a parliamentary strengthening program. For his part, Shija welcomed the formal partnership as a vehicle for the 175 national and subnational legislatures of the Commonwealth to work with NDI to strengthen developing parliaments.

NDI and the CPA also collaborate with other international organizations on parliamentary strengthening, including the United Nations Development Programme and the World Bank Institute.

Related:

Pictured above: Kenneth Wollack (left) and William F. Shija at the signing ceremony in Nairobi

Published September 21, 2010

Sierra Leone: Final Report on the 2007 Elections

ggreene — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 23:22:15 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

02/12/2009

Resource Type:

Report

Language:

English

Media Type:

PDF

English

Attachment	Size
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