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The fall of the 30-year authoritarian regime of President Hosni Mubarak was the culmination of years of deteriorating political, economic and social conditions for Egyptian citizens. The ability of Egypt to move forward from autocracy to democracy will largely depend on whether the process of adopting a new constitution and establishing new democratic institutions is seen by its people as inclusive and representative. NDI has worked in Egypt since 1995 when it helped support Egypt’s first domestic election observation initiative. In 2005 NDI assisted civil society organizations to conduct the first officially-sanctioned election observation in Egypt for the presidential and parliamentary elections. With observers deployed throughout the country, these efforts revealed that, among other deficiencies, voter turnout was far lower than government figures had previously asserted, a revelation which helped expose the fundamental weakness of Egyptian governing structures. The subsequent domestic election monitoring in 2010 (also assisted by NDI) helped expose the massive irregularities in the parliamentary election and helped set the stage for the Tahrir protests of early 2011.
With an existing infrastructure in Cairo that includes senior resident experts in political party development, civic education and domestic election monitoring, experienced Egyptian national staff, and well established local partners throughout the country, NDI is now expanding its programs with two new offices in Alexandria and upper Egypt. NDI’s in-country programs include opportunities for Egyptian political and civic activists to exchange ideas and lessons learned with former senior government and military officials from Chile, Indonesia and Poland and other countries that have had successful democratic transitions.
- Leaders in Chile’s democratic transition travel to Cairo»
- Indonesia’s transition provides key lessons for democracy supporters»
- North African political leaders observe U.S. elections»
NDI also sponsors public opinion research to inform the Institute’s Egyptian partners on Egyptian citizens’ attitudes and priorities. NDI’s programs in Egypt are supported by the U.S. Department of State and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Pictured above: Candidates at a debate organized by Partners in Change in Manufiyah
Political Parties
Historically, elections in Egypt have largely amounted to competitions among candidates at the constituent level based on personality and connections rather than any tie to ideology or to national or regional policy platforms and campaign messages. Parties need to be positioned to present strong and inclusive platforms on issues considered important by the voting public. NDI is helping political parties to develop strategic party platforms and campaigns that resonate with voters through a campaign counterpart program that brings highly skilled campaign experts to Egypt to conduct party consultations and trainings on topics such as campaign management, message development and get out the vote (GOTV). NDI is assisting party officials to build coalitions among like-minded parties in order to consolidate support and use campaign and party resources more effectively. Under the Mubarak regime, political activity was banned at universities so NDI is working with parties to engage young men and women on campuses in party activities.
- Political party newsletter 1st edition (English / Arabic) | 2nd edition (English / Arabic)
- Party-building in the Middle East»
Civil Society Strengthening
To strengthen citizen participation and oversight of political processes, NDI is helping its long-term civic partners to engage in election and political process monitoring, civic and voter education, organization of candidate debates, and electoral reform advocacy campaigns. NDI helps domestic observation organizations with expert support on cutting edge election observation techniques (SMS-based) to monitor the presidential and parliamentary elections including parallel vote tabulation to verify the official results of the elections.
Capitalizing on the enthusiasm for new media in Egypt, NDI is working with civic groups to develop civic education and voter awareness campaigns on Facebook, YouTube and other new media.
- Arab activists learn to leverage new media»
- Egyptian civic group launches website to get out the vote for November polls»
- In Egypt, coalition blended theater, debate to get out the vote»
Women and Youth
The legitimacy of Egypt’s transition could be compromised by the lack of participation of large segments of the citizenry, most notably women and youth. Increasingly, women and youth have been more involved in political party and civil society activities, including as candidates and leaders of nongovernmental organizations; however, parties still largely ignore women and youth in policy debates and platform development processes. NDI is working with parties to devise appropriate policy responses on these issues, and is supporting women and youth to become a more significant part of the decision-making processes in parties and civil society.
- Young women leaders share advice, stories in new NDI publication»
- Young women leaders collaborate at North African regional conference»
- 'Leaders of Tomorrow' conference kicks off collaborative program for North African women»
- Middle East and North Africa: Training future political leaders at the Young Women Leaders Academy»
Contact Information
For more information about these programs, use our contact form or contact:
Washington, D.C.
Katie Croake, Senior Program Officer
(202) 728-5542
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