The Initiative launched the Working Group on Parliament and the Reform of Political Party Legislation in March 2006, in an effort to bring together members of parliaments and experts to discuss and learn more about the national debates on political parties’ legislation across the Arab region. Members include MPs (representing political parties) and experts from Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, oPt, and Yemen.

The initial Knowledge and Consensus Building Phase (2006-2008), focused on reviewing and assessing existing and proposed Arab political party laws, their impact on the political scene, and the role of parliaments in proposing and amending party legislation. In addition to the knowledge products and the learning process which have come out of this collaborative process, one key outcome was reaching a consensus among the members of the working group on the importance and necessity for political party legislation to abide by a number of principles. These principles should serve to guarantee political pluralism as well as parties’ long-term organizational development, inclusiveness, and competitiveness in elections and parliament.

Building on the outcomes and recommendations of the first phase, the Initiative launched phase II of the Working Group. The new Knowledge Dissemination and National Policy Dialogue Phase (2009-2011) shifts the focus towards launching national working groups in countries that have witnessed recent political party legislation such as Jordan and Morocco, to encourage national dialogue and provide support to the ongoing debate on political party legislation reform. It will also seek to disseminate the knowledge products resulting from phase I, and particularly promote the national level use of the General Principles for Political Party Legislation. This second phase of the project will significantly rely on establishing local partnerships and launching national working groups in the view of strengthening MPs legislative capacities, particularly in drafting and amending political party legislation.