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Centre for Democracy and Development

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Centre for Democracy and Development
AbbreviationCDD, CDD-West Africa
Formation1997
Founded atLondon, United Kingdom
TypeThink tank
Legal statusCivil Society
PurposeDemocracy, Human Rights, Peace and Human Security
HeadquartersHouse 16, A7 Street Mount Pleasant Estate (CITEC), Jabi-Airport Road, Mbora District, Abuja, Nigeria
Location
  • Abuja
Region served
West Africa
Official language
English
Director
Dauda Garuba
Websitecddwestafrica.org

The Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) is a non-profit organization headquartered in Abuja, Nigeria.[1] The organization aims to promote the values of democracy, peace and human rights in Africa, particularly in the West African sub-region.[2]

Established in the United Kingdom in 1997 and subsequently registered in Lagos in 1999, the CDD mobilizes global opinion and resources for democratic development and provides a space for critical reflection on the challenges posed to the democratization and development processes in West Africa. It also provides alternatives and best practices for sustaining democracy and development in the region.

History

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The CDD was founded in 1997 in London at a time when Nigeria was under military rule. Its first activity was to organize a roundtable discussion on the future of democracy in Nigeria.[3] One of the founding members was Biko Agozino, a criminologist whose books explored the impact of colonization on the way racial and ethnic minorities are treated by justice systems worldwide.[4] The Center works on policy-oriented scholarship on introducing and improving democratic processes, improving economic governance, safety and development throughout Africa. The Centre is engaged in capacity-building work, policy analysis and advocacy, and as a research reference point on democratic governance, human security, and people-centered development in the region.[5]

Activities

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CDD has offices in Lagos, Abuja, and Maiduguri in Nigeria and an international office in London. The center conducts research on democratization and governance and also trains groups and individuals who are promoting democracy and development in the region.[6] In collaboration with the Kituo Cha Katiba (East African Centre for Constitutional Development), the CDD has run a capacity-building project funded by the Ford Foundation. The project sponsors East African Women Lawyers for Graduate Masters Programs.[7]

Promoting accountability by monitoring election campaign promises

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The Buharimeter project, supported by the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), was a tool designed to track over 222 election pledges made by President Muhammadu Buhari, and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to Nigerians before the 2015 general elections. Buharimeter's one-year report did provide a synopsis of citizens' perception of the implications of the actions of the government and also revealed the degree to which Nigerians were aware of campaign promises and the actions carried out to achieve them.

Knowledge about the existence of the Buharimeter and its findings have taken a global outlook. Aside from highlighting how the initiative was widely reported internationally, Buharimeter is now listed as one of the promise tracking initiatives on the Duke Reporters' Lab. The one-year report was the fifth report released since the project's launch. Others include 30 days, 60 days, 100 days, 7 months' and mid-term assessment reports published in July 2017 and can be viewed on Buharimeter reports. In May 2018, the Buharimeter team at the CDD was expected to release a third-year report which would score the performance of Nigeria's President after 3 years.[8][9][10]

Work on Boko Haram insurgence

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The CDD organised the first intervention that brought Borno residents, the government, and civil society together at the height of the insurgency in 2011. Since then it has organised several forums, developed counter radical narratives,[11][12][13] and supported the Operation Safe Corridor[14] (OSC) program of the Nigerian Government on deradicalisation, rehabilitation of former Boko Haram militants and has an MOU[15] with the Presidential Committee on the North East Initiative.

Work on disinformation and misinformation

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The Centre runs a project on disinformation and misinformation in Nigeria. It has released reports on the fake news ecosystem in Nigeria. In collaboration with Daily Trust, it launched a fact-checking website.[16]

Leadership

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The current Director of CDD is Dr. Dauda Garuba.

References

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  1. ^ William Oscar Johnson. "Centre for Democracy and Development". Devex.com. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  2. ^ "Home". Centre for Democracy and Development. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  3. ^ "Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD)". Africa Governance Institute. Archived from the original on 2013-04-15. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  4. ^ Biko Agozino (2006). "About The Author". ADAM: Africana Drug-Free Alternative Medicine. Lulu.com. p. 145. ISBN 1-4116-6915-0.
  5. ^ "Jibrin Ibrahim" (PDF). Institute of Federalism, University of Fribourg. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-08-13. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  6. ^ "Member Institutes: Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD)". Network of Democracy Research Institutes. Archived from the original on 2012-03-26. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  7. ^ "Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) Nigeria". Peacebuilding Portal. Archived from the original on 2011-10-09. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  8. ^ [1] [dead link‍]
  9. ^ "Fact- Checking - Duke Reporters' Lab". Reporterslab.org. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
  10. ^ "BuhariMeter: Tracking President Buhari's Promises". Africa Check. 18 June 2015. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
  11. ^ "CDD, UNDP trains 60 clerics, youth for de-radicalization in Yobe". The Nation NewsPaper. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  12. ^ developing a transitional justice framework
  13. ^ "Toward". African Portal. SAAIA. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  14. ^ "Boko Haram: NGO sensitises communities to reconciliation, peace building in Borno". eagle online. The Eagle Online. 20 November 2018.
  15. ^ "CDD Signs MoU With PCNI To Strengthen Peace, Reintegration Efforts In North-East Nigeria". Ben TV. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  16. ^ Daily Trust (22 December 2022). "Daily Trust Launches Fact-Check Portal To Fight Fake News". Dailytrust.com. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
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