Al Quds Center for Political Studies recently published the first reports ever prepared on parliamentary monitoring in Jordan. They provide information and analysis to Jordanian citizens and civic groups on various elements of parliament’s performance.

Over a five-month period, al Quds tracked parliamentary attendance, voting records, member participation and other indicators. On the basis of this information, as well as public surveys and interviews with members of parliament (MPs), al Quds has published three reports: “Jordanian Parliament Monitor: The First Parliamentary Monitoring Report,” “Jordanian Opinion Poll: Parliament and the Electoral Law” and “Jordan’s Parliament and the 2009 Budget: A Reading in the Trends and Policy Priorities.” The project is ongoing, and al Quds plans to release additional reports on future legislative sessions.

Through these public reports, the project’s Web site, national surveys and ongoing consultations with civic groups, citizens and MPs, al Quds is contributing to increased government openness, transparency and accountability.

With technical assistance from NDI and support from the U.S. Agency for International Development, the al Quds project is working to bridge the gap between citizens and their representatives. Al Quds has worked to assess how MPs are viewed by the public, understand which issues are most important to citizens and determine an overall public rating of parliament's performance. Simultaneously, al Quds has conducted consultations with MPs to understand how they prioritize issues and how they perceive their role as representatives.

 

Pictured above: Dima Faouri, an al Quds Center research assistant, interviews MP Nassir Al Hamaydeh.

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Published on July 7, 2009