The Impact of International Support for Political Parties in New Democracies: Malawi and Zambia Compared

Abstract

In part as a response to the weakness of political parties, international assistance to political parties has gradually become a more significant element in support programmes for democratic processes and institutions. But international party support also brings new challenges for party institutionalisation in new democracies. In order to shed light on the complex relationship between international party finance and party institutionalisation, this paper assesses the role of party assistance from the perspective of providers of international party support as well as the recipients of support. The empirical analysis is focussed around the Netherland Institute of Multiparty Democracy (NIMD) and its support to enhance political parties in Zambia and Malawi. The key aims of the NIMD programme have been to strengthen interparty dialogue, party institutionalisation and civil society-party linkages. In the paper we assess the party support initiative along these three dimensions of support and assess how NIMD evaluates the outcome of the initiatives. We then discuss to what extent the party support initiatives have met the expectations of the recipient parties in Zambia and Malawi. The empirical data is derived from key informant interviews with NIMD representatives and party and civil society representatives in Zambia and Malawi as well as written documentation.

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