Start date: May 1, 2002
End date: March 31, 2012
Project Budget: $8,210,169
Implementer: National Democratic Institute (NDI)
Objectives
Improve the institutional capacity of Parliament to provide effective oversight of the executive branch of government. Strengthen the ability of Members of Parliament to engage one another within an environment of constructive policy debate. Strengthen the ability of citizens to communicate their interest to legislators and to increase the level of citizen participation in the political processes.
Components
- Exercising legislative oversight
- Enhancing the lawmaking process within Parliament
- Improving constituency relations
- Building indigenous capacity
Achievement/Impact
In 2010, NDI helped organize five parliamentary oversight hearings. The first covered U.S.-Macedonia Relations. The other topics, included: Waste Collection in Rusino Village, Implementation of the Law on Donations and Sponsorships, Implementation of the Law on Free Access of Information, and Implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (initiated by UNICEF). More than 10 ministers provided testimony at these hearings, together with relevant mayors and representatives of public institutions and civil society groups. The conclusions and recommendations were published on the Assembly’s web site.
A national conference: “Open or Closed Candidate Lists – Options for Macedonia” was organized by the project initiating a national debate on the merits and practicalities of open versus closed parliamentary candidate lists systems. Over 400 participants had the opportunity to discuss the implications for Macedonia’s democratic development, equitable representation for women and smaller minority communities in the two systems, and internal party democracy in Macedonia. Due to significant media attention, the topic was elaborated and discussed for several months after the conference.
Sustainability/Legacy
The local legacy organization, the Institute for Parliamentary Development was created to improve the leadership and organizational capacities to be able to provide adequate support to the parliamentary development processes in Macedonia.
Contact Information
Contact at USAID: Sladjana Srbinoska, AOTRs ssrbinoska@usaid.gov
Chief of Party: Chris Henshaw, ndi@ndi.org.mk
Information Officer: Kristijan Georgievski, ndi@ndi.org.mk
Website: www.ndi.org