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NDI views the development of strong, democratic, public-sector institutions as a critical component of its mission. It is through improved governance that the benefits of democratic development most directly impact the lives of citizens. Conversely, the inability of public sector institutions to function effectively and democratically undermines the sustainability of democratic reform. Working with legislatures, executive offices, and local governments, NDI’s governance programs seek to promote effective public-sector institutions and processes that operate in a manner consistent with democratic values of transparency, representation, pluralism and accountability. The Institute delivers technical and institutional support to these bodies, while emphasizing the significance of their political dimensions.
Introduction
NDI has been working to build more effective, transparent, accountable, and responsive public sector institutions around the world for more than 20 years. The Institute currently has governance programs in more than 30 countries in Africa, Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin America, and the Middle East.
Legislatures
A capable and effective national legislature is a foundational pillar of democratic government. NDI works with legislators, legislative staff and others to build the capacity of representative institutions to communicate with citizens and respond to their concerns, to shape laws and policies that reflect national and constituent interests, and to oversee the work of the executive branch, particularly in the promulgation and implementation of the national budget.
Executive Offices
Complementing the Institute’s work with the legislative branch, NDI provides technical and institutional support to the offices of presidents and prime ministers in several countries. Institute programs seek to help those offices be more effective in developing policies, communicating with the media and with citizens, and implementing programs and activities that deliver the benefits of democracy to their citizens.
Local governments
NDI's governance programs also engage with local councils and other local government entities, helping them to work with citizens more effectively, and to better monitor local budgets and delivery of services.
Our Approach
NDI’s approach to governance programs is multinational and comparative. While certain core principles are shared by all democracies, there is no one "correct" model for democratic government. NDI draws on its network of primarily volunteer practitioners, experts, and current and former government representatives and staff from almost as many countries as those in which we work. Whenever possible, the Institute brings practitioners with recent, practical, first-hand experiences in democratic transitions and institution strengthening to countries that are experiencing similar challenges. For example, NDI works closely with the parliament of Slovakia in providing technical assistance and support to countries in the Balkans.
NDI’s programs also emphasize the political dimensions of a government leader’s role, bringing to bear our relationships with and knowledge of other actors in political parties, civil society and the executive branch. Accounting for these political dimensions, NDI believes, are just as important to the success of a program as accounting for the technical and institutional ones. The Institute’s governance programs benefit from NDI's long-term presence and broad network of contacts and relationships in the countries in which we work. Unlike some implementers of technical assistance, NDI has been able to maintain offices and staff in approximately 60 countries worldwide. These offices manage a diverse range of programs that are or have been intensely engaged with civil society institutions, political parties, election administrators and monitors, media and other participants in political and civic life.
Key to all of NDI's governance programs are local and international partnerships. NDI has collaborated on technical assistance and support programs with the World Bank, UNDP, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and other organizations. Over the first half of 2008, for example, NDI partnered with the World Bank Institute (WBI) in order to:
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conduct video conference training programs on parliamentary budget offices with legislators from Indonesia, Thailand, Ghana, Nigeria, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic;
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conduct a five-part video-training series on legislative committees, in Spanish, for legislative staff from Guatemala and the Dominican Republic; and
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co-sponsor an intensive three-day program on developing parliamentary budget offices for legislators and staff from Indonesia, Thailand, Ghana, Nigeria, Dominican Republic, Morocco, and Lebanon.
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NDI builds partnerships with organizations in-country as well, and engages them in the process of providing assistance to legislatures and other government institutions. For example, NDI recently worked closely with the OSCE and the German assistance agency GTZ to organize and conduct a weeklong orientation seminar for new and returning MPs and parliamentary staffers in Montenegro. The seminar reviewed the responsibilities of parliament and introduced the participants to changes in the rules of procedure and the organizational structure of the institution. It also allowed MPs from different parties the opportunity to get to know each other outside of their daily work environment.
