Parliamentary Strengthening

The Westminster Consortium for Strengthening Parliaments and Democracies

The Institute for Democracy and Conflict Resolution is currently part of The Westminster Consortium for Strengthening Parliaments and Democracy, which is undertaking a five-year DFID-funded project on parliamentary strengthening.

Training modules have been delivered by Professor Todd Landman in Macedonia and Uganda, Professor Frances Millard in Georgia, Patrick Hitchen in Georgia and Dr Sarah Birch in Ukraine and Lebanon.

The Institute has taken part in the Parliamentary Strengthening Workshop 7-8 July 2010 at the Thomson Reuters building in Canary Wharf, London. The theme for the workshop was ‘Meeting the Demand for Capable, Accountable and Responsible Legislatures.’

The Workshop brought together country programme managers, parliamentary staff, and MPs from Georgia, Lebanon, Macedonia, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, Ukraine and Uganda. These participants were joined by representatives from Thomson Reuters, Essex IDCR, the House of Commons, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, The International Bar Association, National Audit Office, and the Westminster Consortium for Democracy.

Dr. Sarah Birch delivered a training module in Mozambique in late August and Patrick Hitchen from the Essex Business School delivered training on managment in Georgia in March 2011. The next cycle of training is now being prepared for all partner countries after the mid-term review.

The IDCR has been comissioned under this programme to produce a pratical guide and training package on social methods for NGOs and civil society organisations (CSOs) engaging with parliament. The guide will be produced by mid-September and used in a first round of training in Ukraine in October. Professor Todd Landman and Dr. Tom Scotto are the primary personnel involved in this project.