Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy
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Mozambique
In Mozambique NIMD supports political party development and initiatives that help depolarise politics.
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Contact person for this programme is: Anne-Mieke van Breukelen. For more information on the political context and history of Mozambique, see the Mozambique Factsheet.
NIMD Programme
Local elections are planned for 2013 and the presidential, parliamentary and provincial elections will take place in 2014. After the 2009 elections, the political parties embarked on an electoral reform process, which needs to be finalised by the end of 2012. A constitutional reform process was initiated in 2011. Given the political reality in Mozambique, the outcomes of the electoral and constitutional reform process will for a large part depend on the willingness of Frelimo to allow meaningful reforms and the ability of the opposition parties to effectively contribute to the reform debates.
The programme in Mozambique therefore focuses on the facilitation of informal multiparty dialogue sessions between the political parties on issues within the electoral and constitutional reform debate. The dialogue sessions on reform issues help to promote information sharing, transparency and increased levels of trust between the political parties and other stakeholders. In order to enable the political parties in Mozambique to contribute in an effective way to the reform debates, NIMD also invests in direct capacity building support to the parliamentary political parties through a bilateral programme focusing on policy development and improved institutional and organisational capacities.
Furthermore, the NIMD programme focuses on exploring windows of opportunity for informal dialogue. In that regard NIMD supports dialogue initiatives between women MPs and young MPs of all three parties.
Initiative for Leadership and Democracy in Africa (iLEDA)
NIMD's Mozambique programme aims to promote democratic culture, voice and accountability. To develop voice and accountability, there is a need for Mozambique to create participative democracy and increase democratic citizenship. In 2009, in cooperation with IDASA and Africa Forum, NIMD decided to promote active democratic citizenship through civic leadership training by setting up the Initiative for Leadership and Democracy in Africa (iLEDA) Schools.
This programme will contribute to providing a new young generation of community leaders with democratic values and skills. In the coming years, NIMD will continue with the iLEDA Schools programme, making use of the first Mozambican graduate trainers from Manica and Nampula and expanding to other provinces. The training stimulates interaction between civic leaders and local government authorities, and stimulates multi stakeholder policy debates on a local level.
Programme news
Schools for Democracy Programme improve cooperation between Mozambican citizens and local government
At a glance ...
Political parties in parliament
• Frente de Libertação de Moçambique (Frelimo)
• Resistência Nacional Moçambicana-União Eleitoral (Renamo-UE)
•Movimento Democratico de Mocambique (MDM)
Key achievements in 2010
•Dialogue between political parties and the electoral commission facilitated. through multistakeholder meeting that promoted information sharing, transparency and increased levels of trust between the electoral commission and political parties.
•The conclusions of the dialogue sessions were documented, published and dessiminated through national newspapers, and submitted to parliament.
•Political parties formulated reform proposals with recommendations for electoral law reform, which were submitted to parliament.
• Expansion of the iLEDA Schools for Democracy programme to Nampula Province.
Key achievements in 2011
•Dialogue sessions between political parties and the parliamentary committee in charge of the electoral reform process on the main contentious issues within the electoral law.Out of 30 contentious issues that the committee identified, 27 were resolved.
• Regular round tables between youth political party members on constitutional and electoral law reforms
•Four Schools for Democracy training courses in two provinces, involving over a hundred community leaders at a local level.
Key achievements in 2012
•Parliamentary political parties embarked on strategic planning process, in order to identify long-term priorities for capacity building within their parties.
•Political parties reconfirm commitment to dialogue and democratic development during NIMD-AWEPA conference on the consolidation of peace and democracy.
•Establishment of a School for Democracy alumni network in Manica and Nampula province, promoting regular interaction between governance authorities and community leaders.
Key national partners
•Instituto de Estudos Sociais e Económicos (IESE, Institute of Social and Economic Studies) •Centro de Estudos Mocambicanos e Internacionais (CEMO, Centre for Mozambican and International Studies)
•Centro de Promoçao de Democracia Multipartidaria Moçambique (CPDM-M)
•Mecanismo de Apoio à Sociedade Civil (MASC, Civil Society Support Mechanism)
Key international partners
•British High Commission
•Royal Netherlands Embassy
•Royal Danish Embassy
•Electoral Institute for Southern Africa (EISA)
•Association of European Parliamentarians for Africa (AWEPA)
