Parallel vote tabulations (PVTs), a powerful citizens' tool to analyze the integrity of voting and counting processes as well as the accuracy of official election results, were the subject of a "PVT Academy" held at NDI's Washington office Nov. 17-20. Some 23 participants from 17 countries, all experienced in conducting PVTs, came together to share expertise and harmonize best practices.

iKNOW Politics, an online network dedicated to the advancement of women in politics, launched a new Arabic language version in Amman, Jordan, Oct. 27, opening it up to potentially millions of new users in a region where women are significantly underrepresented politically.

The transitional government in Somalia is seeking to boost public dialogue through its new website - http://www.tfgsomalia.net/ - that allows citizens to speak directly to government officials.

The launch ran in conjunction with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s August visit to Africa when, while in Nairobi, she stated that the United States will continue to expand and extend its assistance to Somalia.

The Democracy Video Challenge, a global project to celebrate democracy through film, launched its second annual competition at the United Nations on Sept. 15, the International Day of Democracy. NDI is a partner of the Challenge, which invites citizens from around the world to create video shorts that complete the phrase: "Democracy is..." in an effort to enhance the global dialogue on democracy. Other partners include democracy and youth organizations, the film and entertainment industry, academia and the U.S.

A two-day regional conference in Jordan, hosted by NDI, brought together civic leaders from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, West Bank/Gaza and Yemen to discuss innovative uses of information technology in election monitoring.