Local Governance and Decentralization.

Specialists
Resources

Todd Diamond

Project Management Director, United Kingdom Division

Rhett Gurian

Chief of Party, Lebanon Community Support Program

Alejandro Ruiz-Acevedo

Chief of Party, Justice for a Sustainable Peace Project

Sharon Van Pelt

Director, Democracy and Governance Practice

Thinking and Working Politically Series: Conserving Guatemala’s Ecosystems

Accountability Ecosystems in Practice

Boosting Accountability and Good Governance

Nigeria Strengthening Advocacy and Civic Engagement

Projects
News and Blog

Promoting Integrity Networks in Peru

To curb corruption in Peru, the public and private sectors must partner to improve investment processes.

Reducing Crime and Restoring Trust in Mexico

Addressing root causes of violence in Mexico is key to reducing crime and restoring citizens’ trust.

Photograph taken at the exhibition "Huellas de la Memoria," where 220 pairs of hanging shoes and footprints engraved with the names of missing people speaks of disappearances in a country with more than 73,000 cases.

Countering Human Rights Violations in Mexico

Cycles of violence in Mexico continue to take a toll on civilians, necessitating greater accountability in Mexico’s human rights system.

Introducing the Rule of Law in Myanmar

Building a transparent and inclusive justice sector is a critical step to improving legal rights for Myanmar’s people in the wake of recent political transition.

Strengthening Education for Youth in Syria

The Syrian conflict has raised an unparalleled need for access to education so that young Syrians have a chance to learn and thrive.

Strengthening Municipal Governance in Jordan

Jordanian communities need innovative, sustainable ways both to improve how municipalities deliver services and to develop closer relationships between citizens and the government.

A New Framework for Local Governance in Moldova

A targeted effort to strengthen local governments in Moldova has increased public trust in them and improved how they deliver services.

Preventing Crime and Violence in Mexico

With better partnerships across the government and civil society organizations, Mexico can improve the way it targets crime and violence in vulnerable communities.

Strengthening Government in Iraq’s Provinces

Provincial governments in Iraq must further develop their skills, resources, and processes so that they can deliver municipal services to their citizens and meet community needs.

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3 Questions with Victoria Cooper: Ebola, COVID-19, and Global Development

As chief of party for the USAID Digital Liberia and e-Government project, Vicki Cooper led efforts to strengthen Liberia’s health, education, and economic growth sectors through enhanced information, communication, and technology capabilities in the aftermath of the Ebola epidemic. 1. How can the global development community use lessons learned from the Ebola crisis in Liberia…

Development Works Here with Dzenita Kolja

We’d like you to meet Dzenita Kolja! Dzenita serves as managing director of the Audit Preparedness Unit within Chemonics’ Global Health Supply Chain Office. Once an aid beneficiary herself, she shares her development journey from Bosnia to the U.S. and what draws her to this work. Dzenita is one reason #DevelopmentWorksHere. 1. Can you tell…

4 Best Practices to Counter and Prevent Violent Extremism Through Governance

Despite the recent weakening of violent extremist groups such as the Islamic State and Boko Haram, these threats continue to be a pressing global issue. In the development sector, countering violent extremism (CVE) and preventing violent extremism (PVE) are increasingly high priorities for government agencies and donors. As USAID, the State Department, and others grapple…

News: Chemonics Presents at the 2017 International Civil Society Week

What part should civil society play in protecting the planet? How have recent political crises put the environment at risk? How can civil society hold government institutions accountable to alleviate the resource curse? These are the kinds of questions that environmental protection and democracy and governance experts will tackle at the International Civil Society Week…

people on motorcycles in Colombia with the word paz or peace in spanish written on posts

Toward Sustainable Peace: Measuring Efforts to Prevent Human Rights Abuses in Post-Accord Colombia

With the signing of Colombia’s peace accord in 2016, new challenges have emerged regarding the country’s human rights agenda. The 2016 United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights annual report highlighted an increasing concern regarding the killings and attacks on Colombian human rights defenders and other social leaders. According to the Colombian NGO Somos Defensores, in…

The Role of Decentralization in Combatting Extremist Influence in Iraq

This post originally appeared on The Atlantic Council. Many governance experts see decentralization as a potential model to mitigate political and sectarian challenges in Syria, Libya, and Iraq and improve livelihoods in those countries by restoring basic services to local populations. But in countries with a long history of absolute control, central government officials frequently…

News: Exploring the Nexus of Politics and Local Governance

Does international development take place inside a political vacuum, where the difference between success and failure hinges purely on getting the technical aspects of an intervention right? Or does development take place inside the unpredictable — and, at times, chaotic — world of politics, where the fate of even the most technically sound solution depends…

Cambodia’s Shrinking Space for Civil Society and the Role of Donors

When conducting a preliminary analysis of civil society capacity in Cambodia in September 2015, there was one topic that dominated all my meetings and interviews: the new Law on Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations (also called LANGO). Everyone, from donors to international NGOs and local civil society organizations (CSOs), were sharing their concern about how LANGO…

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