Political parties can help strengthen environmental democracy through mediating public preferences and political voices, by holding government accountable on environmental actions, and through party competition. But there is a need for more awareness of environmental issues and policy responses to climate change among political parties – that is where international support can help.
Our Long-Term Observer (LTO) training provides knowledge and skills required for those aspiring to become LTOs in future OSCE/ODIHR missions. The course will take place from Monday 28 to Wednesday 30 March 2022 from 09:00-17:00 in Westminster, London.
WFD's Sophia Fernandes and Halyna Shevchuk, Ukraine Country Representative, highlight the importance of women's political participation in conflict resolution and peacebuilding.
The Lebanese youth is severely underrepresented in Parliament, where the median age of MPs is 60.4 years. That is why WFD trained young people elected as MPs to the Lebanese Youth Parliament.
The role of parliaments is not only to adopt legislation, but also to ensure that the laws are of good quality and implemented in practice. This can only happen if laws are scrutinized after they have been adopted.
WFD’s current Inclusive and Accountable Politics (IAP) programme in Uganda is expanding on its past work by promoting quality representation and inclusion of both women and youth. WFD also works directly with Uganda MPs to support their capacity to carry out their accountability function in parliament.
Tickets for the Training for UK short term observers to election observation missions are sold out for both the sessions on 21st February. WFD is planning to launch further STO training sessions later this year.
Election days matter in democracy – but they are not the only thing that matters. The best time to defend electoral integrity, and therefore democracy, is after an election. To be able to make improvements, we need politically smart approaches to electoral reform.
Two recent developments in the Lebanese Parliament show the progress being made in the country to achieve the sustainable development goals and uphold human rights.
Reflecting on a Open Government Partnership Parliamentary Day event in December 2021, Julia Keutgen outlines parliaments' role in restricting and defending civic space and argues that whilst coalitions for change between civil society and parliament require enormous effort, they are vital for defending civic space.
Campaign finance law is a controversial policy area in Moldova, Indonesia and Nigeria. Legislative changes related to the electoral process are usually taking place in a very tense and challenging political environment and tend to accommodate interests of dominant political parties. Therefore, there is always a risk of law making become politicised, which leaves the main legislative challenges unaddressed.
Banjul / London – Westminster Foundation for Democracy’s (WFD) Thematic Election Expert Observation Mission (TEEOM) has today issued its Final Report on the 4 December 2021 Presidential Election in The Gambia.
Very little of the security and stability we strive for can be achieved without women’s equal and unapologetic participation. That’s why we need to help make sure girls in school can become women in politics. It’s 2022 – time to start making it happen.
Representatives of youth political branches from different parties presented arguments in a debate on economy, international relations, and youth policies in North Macedonia. This was also the final event of the Political Debate Academy organised by Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD).