In early February in Bamako, Mali, a group of local gender and legal experts, including a member of the Supreme Court and a former member of parliament, came together to draft a law aimed at improving the representation of women in Mali’s government. The proposed statute included a quota requirement that at least 30 percent of each political party’s candidates in national and local elections be women. The 30 percent provision would also apply to nominations for government positions.

Haiti’s fragile democracy has struggled with a host of political and economic challenges since the fall of the Duvalier family dictatorship in 1986, and elections have often been flash points for hostilities. In 2010, disputes over preliminary presidential election results caused violence to erupt across the country.

In honor of its three decades supporting those who share a common desire to live in free societies that recognize basic human rights, NDI has published a 30th anniversary report highlighting its work in nearly every corner of every continent to advance the promise of democracy.

The report highlights the lessons the Institute has learned over the years — that democracy is a process not an event, that democracy includes those at the margins, that credible elections matter, that democracy must deliver, and that democracy without women is impossible.

Focus group research conducted by the National Democratic Institute (NDI) in Albania in December 2013 and released today shows the public mood as negative, shaped by poor economic conditions. Unemployment and corruption top citizen concerns. There is an undercurrent of cautious optimism for reform--if elected leaders reach out to citizens and engage them meaningfully in public policy decisions.