UNDP's role in strengthening democratic governance

Abstract

This dissertation focuses on if and how the United Nations Development Programme strengthens democratic governance. This dissertation first begins by giving a brief description of democracy's history throughout the years. It then goes on to describe what is understood by good governance and how democratic governance can be assisted. The next chapter defines what is meant by development and what the UNDP understands by development. Some achievements of the UNDP are described. This dissertation goes on to give a detailed account of how the UNDP works to strengthen democratic governance by explaining each focus area of democratic governance. These focus areas include; access to information and e-governance, access to justice and rule of law, anti- corruption, civic engagement, electoral systems and processes, local governance and parliamentary development. The dissertation also uses Sierra Leone as a case study to analyse how the UNDP works to strengthen democratic governance. Some of the UNDP projects in Sierra Leone are described. This chapter also mentions some of the UNDP's failures in Sierra Leone and what is the future for the UNDP in Sierra Leone. The dissertation concludes by critically analysing the UNDP's work and studying if it really has strengthened democratic governance. This chapter also analyses some of the UNDP's failures and some of its strengths. The research of this dissertation is based on a qualitative approach by reviewing previous literature. Reports, journals, books and also the internet were used for current information.