Experience

Assist legal and regulatory reform

Assisting legislators, political parties and civil society groups in reviewing the regulatory system in their country and to arrive at reforms suitable for their context.


Nepal

  • Advised the Parliamentary State Affairs Committee regarding proposed legal amendments on political finance. 

Montenegro

  • Held series of meetings with Montenegrin Members of Parliament on the draft political party finance legislation (European Commission Expert Mission). 

 Cambodia

  • Provided advice to forum including political parties, MPs, CSOs, media on best practices in public funding. 

 Moldova

  • Provided input on comparative experiences and assisted discussion on regulatory reforms. 

 Afghanistan

  • Co-hosted pre- and post-election Preventing Electoral Abuses Conferences in Kabul on election campaign abuses. 

 Georgia

  • Developed local initiative on interpreting the abuse of administrative resources in elections, leading to an Interpretive Memorandum signed by 14 political parties, the Central Election Commission and five leading NGOs. 

 Australia

  • Participated in Expert Round-table on Funding and Disclosure at by the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters, House of Representatives of Australia 

 Sudan (desk study)

  • Conducted gap analysis on the political finance regulations in Sudanese legislation. 

 Armenia

  • Presented European standards to MPs, EMB members and political party, media and civil society representatives at Electoral Code Symposium focusing on the revision of the Armenian electoral legislation. 

 Lebanon

  • Presented input on the lessons learned and ways forward in political finance regulation after the 2009 elections. 

 (FYR) Macedonia

  • Presented international experiences in political finance regulation and enforcement at international event in Skopje.

 Maldives

  • Discussed the Maldivian regulations and actual role of money in politics in an international context at a symposium on electoral reform, gathering political party representatives and different institutions.

 Middle East and North Africa region

  • Co-hosted workshop in Kuwait with MPs and civil society activists from Kuwait and Bahrain on necessary reforms in these countries. 

 Global

  • Project Manager for the IFES Global Standards project on political finance, funded by UNDEF.
  • Co-editor of the book Political Finance Regulation: A Global Perspective. 

 

Support civil society groups in monitoring political finance and in raising awareness

Providing assistance to civil society groups wishing to monitor political party and campaign finance (in particular monitoring campaign spending, abuse of state resources and vote buying). Also supporting initiatives to raise awareness about political finance through various approaches.


Tunisia

  • Conducted multiple trainings of young civil society activists about political finance concepts, regulatory options, civil society monitoring and advocacy approaches. Long-term support to local CSO preparing political finance monitoring, focusing on each step of preparation and implementation in the 2014 elections.

Afghanistan

  • Developed strategy for CSO monitoring of campaign finance in 2010 elections and provided ongoing coaching of implementing CSO from early planning to project implementation and final report development and publication.

Georgia

  • Advised Transparency International Georgia on consecutive campaign finance monitoring projects, from project planning to report development. Monitoring projects carried out in 2010 and 2011-2014.

Lebanon

  • Advised the Lebanese Transparency Association on their strategy and report development regarding their nationwide campaign finance monitoring project for the June 2009 elections

Moldova

  • Advised the civil society organisation CReDO  on  methodologies for monitoring campaign income and spending and the abuse of state resources.

Cambodia

  • Assisted national CSOs in strategic planning and advocacy for political finance transparency.

Ukraine

  • Assisted local CSO in the development of a campaign finance monitoring strategy, and trained field monitors. Also assisted in the development of an advocacy strategy for legal reform.

Serbia

  • Advised Transparency International Serbia on planning and implementation of campaign finance monitoring project.

Maldives

  • Work with local organisations in the Maldives on the development of political finance monitoring methodology.

Zimbabwe

  • Conducted training of ZESN resource persons on political finance regulatory frameworks and civil society monitoring. Assisted in developing monitoring, advocacy and outreach materials in relation to political finance and the abuse of state resources, and in organising regional workshop

Nigeria

  • Conducted multiple workshops for over 60 civil society organisations on campaign finance monitoring approaches.

Indonesia

  • Provided trainings for civil society groups about the monitoring of political finance.

Middle East and North Africa region

  • Co-hosted Amman training for Jordanian and Yemeni civil society organisations.

Global

  • Assist in development and implementation of civil society projects on political finance in Bolivia, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, the Maldives and Moldova.

 

Assist political finance regulators in effective enforcement

Support public institution with a legal mandate to oversee political finance in development of procedures and building capacity for the implementation of political finance legislation, including engagement with stakeholders such as political parties, candidates and civil society groups.


Georgia

  • On several occasions trained State Audit Office of Georgia (formerly the Chamber of Control) staff on political finance oversight, including data collection, review and publication and strategies for selecting and investigating potential violations.

Liberia

  • Drafted revised campaign finance Regulation and compliance manual for the 2011 General election.
  • Advised EMB on the implementation of oversight rules and the publication of received data

Afghanistan

  • Drafted IEC regulations for the 2010 Wolesi Jirga elections and assisted in implementation, and advised on the development of regulations for the 2014 elections
  • Advised the Independent Election Commission (IEC) on enforcing the campaign finance regulations in the 2009 Presidential elections, including recruitment and training of staff and each step of the disclosure process from procedures development to post-election report analysis.

Nigeria

  • Organised multiple trainings of HQ and regional staff members of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on detection and enforcement of political finance regulations..Assisted the review of campaign finance oversight system, including the development of reporting forms, manuals and INEC regulations.

Philippines

  • Provided advice to the Commission on Elections on effective oversight of political finance regulations.

Sierra Leone

  • Advised the Political Parties Registration Commission (PPRC) how to improve the campaign finance reporting system in Presidential, Parliamentary and Local Government elections. Played key role in introduction of financial reporting by political parties. Work on all stages from strategies and regulations and regular meetings with political parties and civil society to reception and publication of reports.

Serbia

  • Engaged with stakeholders to facilitate the implementation of the new Law on Financing Political Activities, provided recommendations for the Anti-Corruption Agency and other Serbian and international stakeholders.

Myanmar/Burma

  • Trained staff from the Union Election Commission on key considerations in political finance oversight.

Jordan

  • Provided input to the IEC about its draft Executive Instructions on political finance.

Albania

  • Assisted the CEC Secretariat in the development of financial reporting forms.

Tunisia

  • Co-hosted study tour for Court of Accounts representatives to meet with Electoral Commission, National Audit Office and Committee for Standards in Public Life in the UK.

Iraq (desk study)

  • Provided input to the IHEC about its draft Regulations on Campaign Finance.

Global

  • Lead author of revised curriculum for political finance regulatory bodies on Training in Detection and Enforcement (TIDE).

   

Support political party staff in political finance

Providing trainings to political party personnel on financial management and compliance with political finance regulations


Georgia

  • Trained party lawyers on international & Georgian practice of regulating abuse of administrative resources.

Liberia

  • Trained political party representatives on compliance with annual reporting requirements.

Nigeria

  • Held workshop with political party representatives and the INEC about reporting requirements, other regulations and enforcement.

Myanmar/Burma

  • Trained representatives of the political parties about key aspects of political finance, financial management and compliance with existing regulations.

 

Research and raising awareness about political finance among various stakeholders

Conducting research about political finance and its connection to key issues in democracy such as gender equality and electoral violence. Support initiatives to raise awareness about these issues around the world.


Afghanistan

  • Planned and assisted Afghan study tours including representatives from different stakeholders to Bosnia & Herzegovina and the Philippines to share experiences in political finance oversight.
  • Lectured on money in politics globally and in Afghanistan for Kabul university students.

Nigeria

  • Previously editor and now regular contributor to monthly Political Finance Newsletter [ADD LINK], writing articles on political finance in Nigeria and worldwide.
  • Hosted political finance stakeholder forum.

Lebanon

  • In joint initiative between the Carter Center and IFES, conducted wider political finance analysis through fieldwork and interviews and organised post-election evaluation workshop to strengthen procedures for future elections.

Egypt

  • Lectured on political finance at the Al-Ahram Center and the Cairo University Faculty of Economics and Political Science.

Indonesia

  • Conducted training for national journalists on investigating campaign finance violations in the run-up to the 2009 Parliamentary elections.

Middle East and North Africa region

  • Co-hosted Beirut workshop for experts and CSO representatives from eight Arab countries on the oversight of political finance.

Global

  • Co-editor of International IDEA Handbook on Political Finance (2014).
  • Lead author of political finance module for the BRIDGE curriculum
  • Managed project on gender equality and political finance, including interviews with women candidates and multi-stakeholder working groups in Tunisia and Yemen.
  • Responsible for project planning and oversight of researchers in different continents during seven months, including data quality control and database design. Responsible for collection and analysis of political party and campaign finance regulations in 180 countries. Database available at www.idea.int/political-finance
  • Co-ordination of articles for 2000 conference regarding Election Management and Political Funding in Southern Africa. Assisted in the preparation of the (first) IDEA Handbook on Funding of Political Parties and Election Campaigns.
  • Advised the Carter Center on integrating political finance in international election observation missions.
  • Presented thoughts on How to study the impact of political finance regulations
  • Lead author of Electoral Processes Diagnosis (EPD) methodology for evaluating different aspects of election processes.
  • Reviewed chapter on political party and campaign finance for upcoming OSCE publication.

  

Professional memberships

  • Board member of International Political Science Association (IPSA) Research Committee on Political Finance and Political Corruption since 2006.
  • Member of the ACE (Administration and Cost of Elections) Practitioners’ Network since 2007.

 

Panelist, selected conferences

  • Commonwealth Secretariat, Validation Meeting on new Best Practice Guide of Commonwealth Legislative Approaches to Political Finance Regulation. London 2020.

  • A-WEB, Election Management Capacity Building Program “Fostering Transparency in Political Finance”. Seoul 2019
  • Kharkiv Press Club, Lessons from the 2019 Elections: Assessing the Role of Money in Ukrainian politics. Kharkiv 2019
  • Council of Europe and European Union, Workshop on Misuse of State Resources. Tirana 2018.
  • Lithuanian Election Commission and OSCE, E-reporting In Political Party Finance. Vilnius 2018.
  • European Inter-University Centre, Training for International Election Observers. Venice 2015-2019
  • NDI, Regional Leadership Forum for South Eastern Europe Political Parties. Sarajevo 2017.
  • OSCE, Anti-Corruption Expert Meeting, Lessons from South East Europe. Vienna 2016.
  • Justice and Human Rights Ministry, National Conference on State Administration Law, Bukittinggi, Indonesia 2016.
  • Government of Trinidad and Tobago, Forum on Political Finance Reform. Port of Spain 2016.

  • State Audit Office of Georgia (and others) Regional Conference on Money in Politics. Tbilisi 2017 and 2016

  • NDI, Regional Leadership Forum for South Eastern Europe Political Parties. Sarajevo 2017.

  • Expert Forum, Money and Politics, linking public resources to the illicit financing of political parties, Bucharest 2017.

  • European Inter-University Centre, Training for International Election Observers. Venice 2017 and 2015

  • Justice and Human Rights Ministry, National Conference on State Administration Law, Bukittinggi, Indonesia 2016.

  • Government of Trinidad and Tobago, Forum on Political Finance Reform. Port of Spain 2016.

  • OSCE, Anti-Corruption Expert Meeting, Lessons from South East Europe. Vienna 2016.

  • Election Commission of India. Regional Conference on the Use of Money in Politics. New Delhi, 2015.

  • International IDEA & Electoral Tribunal of the Federal Judiciary of Mexico Global Conference on Money in Politics. Mexico City 2015.

  • Tribunal Superior Eleitoral, International Seminar on Electoral Financing and Democracy. Brasilia 2015.
  • Stefan Batory Foundation & Promo-LEX, Campaign Finance in the 2015 General Local Elections. Chisinau 2015.
  • International IDEA, Nordic Meeting on Political Finance Regulation. Stockholm, 2015.
  • Stanford University, Conference on Lobbying and Campaign Finance, Stanford, 2014.
  • IFES US Election Program, Panel on Campaign Finance. Washington 2012 and 2014.
  • Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters, Parliament of Australia, Expert roundtable on funding and disclosure, teleconference 2014. 
  • OSCE/ODIHR Political Party Expert Seminar. Panel on "Abuse of administrative resources". Warsaw 2014.
  • OSCE/ODIHR Campaign Finance Observation Expert Seminar. Warsaw 2014.
  • OECD, Restoring Trust in Government, Addressing Money and Influence in Public Decision Making. Paris 2013. 
  • OSCE/ODIHR Declaration of Principles Meeting. Warsaw 2013. Panel on “Observation of Campaign Finance”.
  • OSCE/ODIHR Political Party Expert Seminar. Warsaw 2013. Panel on “Political Party Funding”.
  • University of Denver, Strategic Issues Program, The Future of Campaign Finance. Denver, 2012.
  • IFES US Election Program, Panel on Campaign Finance in the 2012 Presidential Elections. Washington 2012.
  • IPSA, 22nd World Congress. Panel on “New Directions in the Study of Political Finance”. Madrid 2012.
  • Central Election Commission/IFES/OSCE, Conference on Political Finance Reform, Chisinau 2011.
  • Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, Roundtable on Political Party Financing. Prague 2011.
  • IPSA & European Consortium for Political Research joint conference, Whatever happened to North-South? Sao Paulo February 2011. Panel on “Money and politics in a comparative perspective”.
  • Lebanese Ministry of Interior and Municipalities & European Union, Supervisory Commission on Electoral campaign (SCEC) Experience in 2009 Parliamentary elections, Building Consensus on the way forward. Beirut September 2010. Panel on “Campaign Finance Monitoring: SCEC experience”.
  • European Union (NEEDS) Domestic Election Observers’ Forum. Brussels July 2010. Panel on “Operations Relating to Watching Political Finance”.
  • FCO, DFID, IDEA Delivering Effective Political Party Assistance: Challenges for Policy Makers and Practitioners. Wilton Park April 2010. Panel on “What Should be the Focus of Our Support?”
  • United Nations UN Convention Against Corruption 3rd State Party Meeting Civil Society Forum. Doha November 2009. Panel on “UNCAC preventive measures for public and private sector integrity”
  • Jacobs University Conference on Ethnic [Political Party] Bans in Africa. Bremen September 2008. Panel on “Policy Recommendations”.
  • International Political Science Association 20th World Congress. Fukuoka July 2006. Panel on “Comparative Representation and Electoral Systems”.
  • Sida, IDEA Workshop on Methods and Experiences of Evaluating Democracy Support. Stockholm. April 2006.