After nearly 11 months of popular protests calling for greater economic reforms, more accountable government and better public service delivery, then-President Ali Abdullah Saleh signed the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) agreement in November 2011, transferring presidential authorities to Vice President Abdo Rabu Mansour Hadi. The agreement launched a transitional period that saw an election affirming Hadi’s appointment as the president, an inclusive National Dialogue Conference (NDC), and a constitutional drafting process. During this period, NDI and its local partners conducted town halls around the NDC to encourage citizen participation in the transition process, fostered the development of a cross-party women’s  alliance that advocated for a 30 percent women’s quota,t and engaged political parties on election preparation efforts. While political progress faltered with the outbreak of fighting in 2015, NDI has remained engaged with local partners in preparation for a renewed transition.

NDI began providing provisional assistance to the Yemeni government in 1993, helping with the country’s first multiparty parliamentary elections. This assistance continued throughout the civil war and the subsequent parliamentary and presidential elections of 1997, 1999, 2003 and 2006. Since establishing a permanent presence in Yemen in 1997, NDI has expanded its work to include political party development, legislative support, local governance, civil society strengthening, women’s political participation, civic education and tribal conflict mitigation. NDI’s long-standing relationships with government officials, political parties and civic leaders have earned the Institute a favorable reputation as a leading organization in Yemen on democratic issues.