Process and Results Verification for Transparency (PRVT) is an election day observation methodology that allows nonpartisan citizen organizations to systematically assess the quality of opening, voting, closing, and counting – as well as official results and, indirectly, the tabulation process –  at a national scale and independently verify official results.

Parliaments play an essential role in preventing corruption, including through a sound legislative process and rigorous legal drafting. The risk of corruption increases when the legislative process is opaque or the resulting laws include imprecise definitions, weak enforcement powers, ambiguous accountabilities, or excessive exemptions. There is also the possibility that the law itself was written with corrupt intent or to benefit a select group or harm others.

Kleptocracy, which means “rule by thieves,” describes an especially pernicious, predatory type of corruption whereby the institutions of the state are deformed to serve regime elites to steal as much as they can from their own citizens.

This guideline was produced by the National Democratic Institute and the Parliament of Malaysia in collaboration with the Attorney General's Chambers Malaysia, the Public Service Department, the Malaysia Office of the Chief Government Security Officer, and the Legal Affairs Division, Prime Minister’s Department of Malaysia.

Civil society organizations are increasingly undertaking social media monitoring initiatives as a part of their efforts to analyze the information environment and how it impacts democratic norms and civic participation in their communities and across the globe. Digital platforms play particularly profound roles in closing spaces, allowing for information exchange when traditional media is often captured or state-sponsored. Unfortunately, these platforms can also be weaponized as instruments of propaganda, censorship, surveillance, and control.

Swift access to trustworthy information is critical for first responders, governments, and the general public during crises and other critical democratic moments. However, crises often present unique and heightened risks to the information space. During recent crises like Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Tigray War in Ethiopia, and the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, for example, information manipulation, hate speech, and other malicious online content have shaped and exacerbated armed conflict and civil unrest. 

The National Democratic Institute’s (NDI) Democracy and Technology, and Gender, Women, and Democracy teams collaborated on a submission to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Opinion (SRFoE), Irene Khan,  in response to her call for inputs to her report on gendered disinformation. 

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.