A Legislative Openness Working Group, co-anchored by the Government and the Congress of Chile and NDI, was formally launched at the annual summit in London on Thursday of the Open Government Partnership (OGP). The working group is a partnership between civil society, parliaments and governments to share good practice on legislative openness, including information about commitments that governments and parliaments can make to engage citizens more actively in the legislative process.

Men and women of South Sudan believe they are an essential part of the country's constitution-making process, according to a new NDI report based on a series of focus groups held around the country.

“We do not want the big government people to do it alone,” said one participant, reflecting a response shared by a broad segment of those taking part in the study.

Since it was officially launched at the World e-Parliament Conference on International Democracy Day last September, the Declaration on Parliamentary Openness has gained broad international support.

Regional instability, Islamist terrorist attacks and persistent lack of food challenge the democratic gains made since the 1990s in Niger. While one of the world’s largest uranium producers, the country is ranked by the United Nations as one of the poorest in the world. Past corrupt practices and lack of oversight over how previous Nigerien governments awarded mining contracts have resulted in uneven distribution of revenue from the country’s expansive extractive industries.

Some 39 countries have signed the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG), created by the African Union (AU) in 2007 as a roadmap to encourage better governance across the continent. It sets out international standards of good governance and democracy in such areas as rule of law, free and fair elections, and condemning unconstitutional changes of government.