This document offers practical approaches to identify and challenge cases of violence against women in politics (VAW-P) in Ecuador. Throughout this document, real examples of VAW-P - as established in the Ecuadorian Democracy Code - are presented along with practical exercises to identify and file formal complaints of VAW-P through the legal system. The guide was developed by Ecuadorian civic organization MEGA Mujeres with the support of the National Democratic Institute’s country office.
One of the main challenges facing Georgian municipalities is ensuring that citizens exercise their right to contribute to the development of their community through the municipal budget development process. Municipal budgets are one of the most critical pieces of policy documentation at the local level, outlining the infrastructural, social, economic and cultural priorities of the municipal government.
This guide, “Local Government Gender Assessment and Action Planning” (LGGAAP), can be used by local government staff and officials in collaboration with civil society organizations and members of the community to assess how well a local government addresses gender inequality and engages with diverse groups of women. Following the assessment, it can help to mainstream gender throughout local government policies, programs and structures and to better understand the potential impact government actions may have on women.
In the face of many global challenges, from climate change to public health and democratic backsliding, an effective government strategy demands the participation of citizens. In particular, democratic parliaments that have embraced open governance understand that people must be at the heart of parliament and that governance must be responsive to citizens.
Citizen participation is instrumental in promoting transparent and accountable government, and in fostering the norms that underpin a functioning democratic system. Democracy develops and deepens when citizens are active and exercise their right to be heard, and when they use organized, informed action to hold government accountable for making real improvements in people’s lives.
At the start of this century, just over 20 years ago, Peru was in the process of deep ‘dekleptification.’ After a decade in power, President Alberto Fujimori and Vladimiro Montesinos, his notorious chief of intelligence services, had fled the country to evade justice. Hundreds of leaked videos– showing Montesinos paying out bribes to political, business and media figures– made a compelling case for wholescale reform of the country’s institutions.
Human-centered design frameworks start by identifying who a product is for and then placing them at the center of the product strategy. The Co/Act toolkit adapts and expands this approach to design digital products, services, or campaigns through modular do-it-yourself style activities that are aggressively low cost, high impact, interdisciplinary, and focused on building the capacity of participants.
The National Democratic Institute (NDI), in partnership with the International Republican Institute (IRI), produced a House Democracy Partnership (HDP) Global New Member Orientation Manual to support newly elected members of parliament (MPs) and staff in onboarding to the legislature. The manual offers guidance for legislators and staff in their orientation to the legislature, outlining global examples from HDP partner countries and beyond.
The Handbook is an open-source resource designed to help parliaments develop an understandable and implementable cybersecurity plan. It includes explanations of key security topics that parliaments and their staff should be aware of, essential strategies and recommended tools to limit risk, and tips and links to additional resources that can help a parliament implement such recommendations. The Handbook was produced by NDI and the House Democracy Partnership (HDP).