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WFD’s CEO, Anthony Smith, spoke to Devex about putting democracy at the heart of the UK’s international strategy. He argued that democracy and human rights are a critically important part of the UK’s values and directly relevant to our national interests and outlined a three-pronged strategy for the UK’s democratic strengthening work.
The new European Commission Country Report on North Macedonia 2020 highlights two achievements which were supported by WFD, including the adoption of the Declaration for Active Political Participation of Persons with Disabilities.
The COVID-19 pandemic has left many governments feeling torn between focusing on addressing the virus and ensuring a recovery on the one hand and addressing the climate emergency on the other. WFD believes that, if they are transparent and inclusive, democracies can do both.
In response to COVID-19, countries have applied different legislative models to introduce emergency measures. Some countries declared a state of emergency. Others decided to rely on existing legislation to face the extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite common assumptions, neither is ‘better’ or ‘worse’ for democracy and both approaches have carried considerable risks for parliamentary accountability. To declare an emergency or not to declare an emergency is not the question. Whether or not democracy is safeguarded depends on a separate set of good practices.
Just under half of 33 countries do not have a sunset clause in their emergency COVID-19 legislation, WFD’s Pandemic Democracy Tracker shows.
The Parliamentary Budget Office in North Macedonia established with the support of WFD by the end of 2019 organised its first presentation to the members of parliament. The PBO presented its work and their first analysis оn the latest macroeconomic indicators to the newly established Parliament in the country.
The UK ambition to defend and strengthen open societies and open economies around the world is a laudable policy objective that must be tethered to an operating model that creates the conditions for these societies and economies to emerge and thrive. This model should be built on the premise of doing development democratically.
A strong, healthy democracy needs constant care and attention, even in good times. During a crisis we need to be even more vigilant. The COVID-19 pandemic has hurt democracy, amid a long-term trend of democratic decline.
On September 4 2020, representatives of 13 political parties in Kyrgyzstan signed a Memorandum of Understanding, which was elaborated with the support of Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) in Kyrgyzstan.
In the short time since the Prime Minister announced the creation of a new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, my former colleagues in both the FCO and DFID have been working hard to prepare for its launch tomorrow. But determining the culture of FCDO will be a multi-year task – I was present when DFID was created and know how significant this change in identity could be.
Matthew Hedges, who was until recently Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Paraguay, will take the reigns as Westminster Foundation for Democracy’s Regional Director for Asia and the Americas in September 2020. He will be responsible for the strategy, programming and team management across both regions.
Celebrations for International Youth Day (IYD) 2020 on 12 August may have gone virtual, but young people are still the big stars. IYD 2020 comes in the shape of a virtual podcast discussion, delivered from youth to youth, alongside creative artists.
Corruption is detrimental to the successful functioning of democratic political systems, economic development, and the provision of public services in society. To overcome corruption, countries in transition increasingly count on the role of an Anti-Corruption Commission or Agency (ACA). In this blog, Franklin De Vrieze and Luka Glusac discuss the role of the parliament of Ukraine and the country’s ACA in combating high-profile corruption.
WFD, through its inclusive and accountable politics programme, is working towards greater access and inclusion of women and marginalized groups in formal and informal political participation.
