While budgets for some donor agencies may be decreasing, many are spending a growing percentage of their budgets on governance programmes. Within the field of governance, legislative development is one area of growth. Much has been done to strengthen legislatures in developing countries. What lessons have been learned from past experience?
This paper prepared for the UNDP addresses the broad conceptual issues of the role of legislatures in good governance. It begins with a description of legislatures and legislative behaviour, and then provides specific information regarding legislative development. Sections two and three explain what legislatures do, how they do it, some ways in which they vary, and how structure and party systems may influence legislative behaviour. Section four briefly describes problems commonly faced by legislatures around the world. Sections five and six explain what legislative development is, show the kinds of organisations involved, and provide examples of legislative development activities.
Good governance on a continuing basis requires an effective institutional infrastructure and functioning legislatures have proven their worth as part of a set of core institutions. Effective legislatures help to sustain democracy where it exists and elsewhere help to democratise by fulfilling the promise inherent in the public’s right to be represented. Other conclusions from the paper include:
- In many legislatures an institutional consciousness is weak or non- existent, and members lack a vision or concern for the power and development of their legislature.
- Individuals and groups in civil society often do not understand the workings of the legislature, and are often unskilled in articulating their needs to the legislature.
- Legislatures sometime lack the constitutional or legal authority to carry out a significant lawmaking or oversight role.
- Many legislatures lack access to the information required for them to adequately analyse government proposals.
- Many developing nations lack prepared legislators and professional legislative staff.
- Many developing legislatures suffer from inadequate facilities and equipment.
The paper describes 36 legislative development activities designed to ameliorate the problems described above. These activities are intended to help legislatures become more open, effective, and responsive institutions. In order to achieve this, donors should:
- Ensure the support of legislative leaders for their initiatives in the sphere of legislative development.
- Take care to balance participation of all major parties in the reform committees.
- Co-operate with other donors in delivering legislative assistance programmes.
- Work towards sustainability of the project by making changes permanent in legislative rules, making the host legislatures pay for new services on a phase-in basis, and making legislative leaders sign an agreement to maintain new equipment before having it installed.
