On Tuesday, April 19, NDI’s Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, Jim Swigert, delivered remarks before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the prospects  for democracy in Central America’s Northern Triangle.

Morocco’s hierarchical political culture has not traditionally encouraged members of parliament (MPs) to engage with citizens about their priorities. Nor do citizens have much experience or confidence in raising concerns with their elected officials. This constituent gap has undermined the development of more representative and responsive government in Morocco.

For many young people today, being civic minded and interested in addressing social problems doesn’t translate into traditional political engagement. In the U.S., the “best and brightest” are often drawn more to Silicon Valley than Washington, DC, seeking to solve social problems by means other than government—through volunteerism, the private sector or social enterprises. In the Middle East and North Africa, many young people find too few opportunities to engage the formal political system and, in many places, see closing civic space.

On November 12, 2015, the Malian National Assembly adopted a historic gender quota bill. The new law, which requires that at least 30 percent of elected or appointed officials be women, is a result of concerted action to reverse several years of negative trends in women’s   representation in positions of power.