NDI President Kenneth Wollack outlined ways the international community can provide moral support and practical assistance to political and civic leaders, media and ordinary citizens in the aftermath of the brutal crackdown by government forces in Belarus following failed elections Dec. 19.

Wollack spoke at a Jan. 27 hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs.

Over the course of 20 years, Albania has made great steps in its democratic transition. Since 1991, NDI and the International Republican Institute (IRI) have been proud to support Albanian political parties, civic groups and citizens as they seek to build a political system of fairness, inclusion and transparency.

In Colombia, as in many countries in Latin America, municipal councilors generally receive little training in the skills they need to represent their constituents effectively. This is especially true for small and poor municipalities in post-conflict regions or those with large Afro-Colombian or indigenous populations.

“The tools of the trade must be learned on the job,” said Yamil Quinto of Istmina, a municipal council member from the city of Istmina in the primarily Afro-Colombian department of Chocó. (Colombian departments are the equivalent of states.)

Full integration into Europe – through membership in the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) – is high on the agenda for Montenegro. But certain membership requirements still must be fulfilled.