TDEA implemented an Election Observation in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa project for promoting free and fair elections in Pakistan. Building upon the gains and lessons learned from the organizational experience of observing the elections since 2008, TDEA deployed trained and duly accredited election-day observers to observe voting, counting, and result tabulation processes in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. TDEA employed a distinctive strategy to enable non-partisan local civil society organizations to objectively and methodically observe election day. To advance its objective of transparent elections, TDEA organized five consultative workshops across Pakistan’s major regions, bringing together representatives from civil society, financial management experts, political party members, and other stakeholders. A key outcome of these workshops was the development of a comprehensive, first-of-its-kind digital platform that offers citizens detailed, searchable data on the assets and liabilities of political representatives and the audit histories of political parties dating back to 2002.

Duration: October 2023 – May 2024

Funding Agency: National Democratic Institute (NDI)

TDEA implemented a Supporting Electoral and Legislative Processes – NICs for Women and Other Marginalized Groups in Flood-affected Areas (SELP) project. The SELP project aimed to facilitate women and other marginalized groups affected by the recent floods in Sindh and Balochistan. The project facilitated more than 80,000 women and other marginalized persons, including the elderly, transgender people, and persons with disabilities, for NIC registration and issuance of replacement of cards. This initiative enabled them to seek relief and assistance from the public and non-governmental programs that require NIC while enabling them to exercise their right to vote or contest during elections effectively.

Duration: January 2023 – March 2024

Funding Agency: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

TDEA implemented an Electoral Quality and Inclusiveness in Pakistan (EQuIP) project through the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN).  The EQuIP project contributes to the overall goal of “Promoting Free and Fair Elections in Pakistan”, including General Elections 2024, especially on technical quality and inclusiveness. The project aims to contribute to the consolidation of democracy in Pakistan through improved electoral processes, focusing on quality and inclusiveness. The project engaged with the Election Commission of Pakistan, political parties, and other key election stakeholders, with a special focus on the inclusion of women, people with disabilities, and transgender people. Through the EQuIP project, TDEA continued to provide objective and impartial information on the electoral process while strengthening civil society’s capacity to observe elections and advocate for meaningful electoral reforms. TDEA conducted nationwide election observation of the general elections (GE) 2024 through trained and accredited observers. This effort culminated in the development and dissemination of key election reports.

Duration: September 2020 – April 2025

Funding Agency: United States Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL)

TDEA implemented an Enhancing Women’s Political and Electoral Participation (EWPEP) project. The EWPEP project successfully decreased the gender gap on electoral rolls in targeted districts, including Gujranwala, Kasur, and Bahawalnagar in Punjab, as well as Swabi, Nowshera, Battagram, and Swat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), by 9.6 percent.   The project utilized a unique two-pronged approach, focusing on both the supply side by strengthening citizens’ registration infrastructure, as well as mobilizing communities on the demand side. TDEA provided 38 gender desks across NADRA registration centers in the project districts, successfully facilitating 113,635 (around 9.6%) women and causing an additional facilitation of approximately 60,000 women during the project’s implementation who were previously identified as being out of the citizens’ registration loop.

Duration: January 2022 – December 2022

Funding Agency: Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany

TDEA implemented a Technology for Efficient and Effective Elections (T3E) project. The T3E project contributed to optimizing the efficiency of the election management system and enhancing transparency, leading to increased public trust in the election management body. The project remained successful in initiating an objective and informed discourse on the advantages and disadvantages of election technologies in light of Pakistan’s political, social, and electoral context through the Election Tech Forum that comprised election managers, data stakeholders, and information technology experts. TDEA developed four policy briefs about using technologies to improve the election management system, facilitated Election Commission of Pakistan in developing two Android applications – web and mobile-based, and formed an Election Tech Forum comprising of election technology experts.

Duration: July 2020 – October 2023

Funding Agency: National Endowment for Democracy (NED)

TDEA implemented a Women’s Enjoyment of Rights, Empowerment, and Leadership (WE’RE Leaders) project. WE’RE Leaders’ outcome was to increase political empowerment and enjoyment of rights by women, particularly young and marginalized women and those at risk, in Pakistan. The project was implemented in 20 districts in partnership with member organizations of the Free and Fair Election Network. The project employed a multi-pronged approach to enhance women’s civil and political participation by strengthening the democratic institutions and statutory commissions through technical support and enhancing demand for greater political participation of women through building capacities of political workers, civil society actors, media, and citizens. The project has contributed towards improved political empowerment and enjoyment of rights by women by bolstering their leadership capabilities, empowering them as political workers and leaders, and educating them as citizens conscientious of their rights. Through partnerships with (region and district-based) local chapters of political parties, the project effectively engaged and trained women political workers, polling agents, and candidates helping them to successfully claim leadership positions within their parties and become members of elected assemblies and local councils.

Duration: April 2019 – March 2023

Funding Agency: Global Affairs Canada (GAC)

TDEA implemented a Strengthening Electoral and Legislative Processes (SELP) Women’s National Identity Card and Voter Registration Campaign project. The project was unique as it premised on multi-stakeholder partnerships involving the NADRA, CSOs, and ECP’s development partners. The campaign exemplified a unique public-private partnership that yielded an unprecedented increase in women’s voter registration. As many as 4.3 million women were registered between October 2017 and April 2018 compared to 4.8 million registered between May 2013 and September 2017. Overall, the campaign resulted in an addition of 9.24 million women on the electoral rolls between October 2017 and October 2020.

Duration: October 2017 – October 2020

Funding Agency: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

TDEA implemented a Citizens’ Voice Project (CVP) funded by United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Its primary aim was to enable civil society organizations (CSOs) in Pakistan to harness citizens’ potential for strengthening public accountability – a prerequisite for improved governance. CVP was unique in its design and approach towards a plethora of complex governance challenges related to accountability, transparency, and responsiveness. The eight-year CVP awarded 364 grants and distributed funds to 227 CSOs to work in 154 districts across Pakistan’s four provinces, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. CVP rolled out 16 grant cycles in 26 multidimensional thematic areas. The project’s messages related to strengthening citizens’ voice, establishing state-citizen linkages and enhancing transparency and accountability in the governance framework have reached more than 50 million Pakistani citizens. The project’s design also provided for equipping citizens and government officials to play their respective roles in strengthening the processes and institutions of democratic governance. Towards the end, 70,791 citizens and 10,981 government officials received training to make the state-citizen linkages sustainable and meaningful.

Duration: May 2011 – December 2019

Funding Agency: United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

TDEA implemented Citizens’ Action for Democratic Governance (CADG) through the support of member organizations of FAFEN, to sustain and strengthen its core programme activities and prepare for a longer-term future programming. This project built on the successes of Supporting Transparency, Accountability, and Electoral Processes in Pakistan (STAEP) programme and represented the planned core election-related programming and activities. The project supported the formation of 48 Governance Support Groups at district, regional, and provincial levels, which raised electoral demands for improved participation. As many as 4,921 citizens were trained for observing Local Government elections, and 9000 citizens were mobilized to contest elections. The programme primarily focused on developing new and strengthening existing relationships between rights-holders and duty-bearers that enabled citizens’ voices to be channelled into administrative, regulatory, and legislative reforms, resulting in improved electoral, legislative, and local governance. During the course of the project, 234 field staff, 5,912 observers, 4,170 citizen volunteers, 3,400 civil society representatives, and 6,000 local government candidates were engaged.

Duration: May 2015 – March 2016

Funding Agency: United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO)

Former United Kingdom Department for International Development

(UK DFID)

TDEA implemented a Deepening Democracy and Electoral Support in Pakistan (DESP) project. The project contributed towards more inclusive, transparent, and responsive democratic institutions and processes in 32 districts of Pakistan. DESP Project achievements included improvement of public perception regarding the performance of democratic governments through observation of by-elections, conduct of advocacy for transparent, accountable, and responsive electoral rules, mapping of electoral and political violence, assessment of voters list for completeness and accuracy, and advocacy for citizen and voter registration of women and minorities. The project focused on continued oversight of electoral and parliamentary processes and evidence-based advocacy for improved enforcement of existing statutes and legal and policy reforms through proactive engagement with political parties, parliamentarians, the Election Commission of Pakistan, civil society, and media. The project also sought encouragement of public debate, dialogue, and discourse to strengthen a pro-democracy narrative in the country. The project engaged 121,464 female and 8,805 male citizens, 429 people with disabilities, 22 transgender persons, 3,829 young male students, 3,133 young female students, 338 journalists, 660 civil society organizations, 73 political parties, and 473 observers in various project-related activities.

Duration: July 2016 – March 2017

Funding Agency: United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO)

Former United Kingdom Department for International Development

(UK DFID)