NIMD’s 2020 Annual Report, The Promise of Democracy, is now available! Inside you can find an overview of our work in 2020, including key results and a reflection from our Executive Director, Thijs Berman.
The promise of democracy in 2020
With the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 was a year that no-one expected. It was a hard year for democracy, in many ways, with unprecedented rollbacks of democratic freedoms.
At the same time, 2020 shone a spotlight on the inequalities within our societies. We have seen, first hand, the unequal toll COVID-19 has taken on the poorest and most vulnerable in our societies. Perhaps, based on everything we have seen, our societies will start to call for more inclusion and equality.
And some might even see the key role democracy can play in this, as the only political system where every individual counts.
In the end, we won’t stop the pandemic unless everyone, in all corners of every country, has access to the right treatment and, ultimately, to a vaccination. Democracy will be crucial in ensuring the level of inclusiveness that can make this possible.
NIMD in 2020
As a network, we see the increasing importance of our work in this context. We worked hard in 2020 to adapt to the changing restrictions and demands of the world around us.
For example, we are proud of our work to ensure continued citizen oversight in Kenya, supported much-needed electoral reforms in Honduras… And – across all our programmes – we have continued to bring politicians and citizens together in dialogue.
The 2020 Annual Report presents our main results, and delves into the stories of some of the inspiring people we have worked with.