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.

With parliamentary elections approaching, Iraqi women are looking for ways to ensure that their voices and concerns are not excluded from the political debate. More than 200 women and men from a range of parties, regions and occupations came together in Erbil, Iraq, Oct. 31 — Nov. 2 to develop a unified vision for a National Platform for Women.

In preparation for elections in southern Sudan next April, the Sudanese Network for Democratic Elections (SuNDE) has concluded a successful two-week voter education campaign, conducting 375 events in 37 counties in all 10 states of southern Sudan.

The presidential, parliamentary and local elections will be the first nationwide vote since the start of Sudan’s civil war, which began in 1986 and ended in 2005 with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA).