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The 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement marked a historic turning point in Sudan’s tumultuous history. Succeeding where previous peace documents failed, it addressed many outstanding issues between the north and south, ultimately paving the way for a period of relative stability. To assist the Sudanese, IRI works to professionalize political parties active in the implementation of peace processes.
IRI currently works to support the implementation of the 2011 Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD), an agreement that lays the groundwork for sustainable peace in the much-troubled region. Specifically, the Institute focuses on strengthening the political capacity of former rebel movements that have signed the DDPD and are committed to a lasting political solution in Darfur. IRI is supported by a grant from the U.S. Department of State Office of the Special Envoy to Sudan and South Sudan.
From 2005 to 2011, IRI supported the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, which ended Sudan’s decades-long civil war and laid a framework for lasting peace in the war-ravaged country.
Support for DDPD Implementation
On July 14, 2011, the DDPD was signed by Sudan’s ruling National Congress Party and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM), a Darfur rebel movement. The agreement, intended to bring an end to hostilities, lays out comprehensive development programs as well as compensation funds for millions of internally displaced persons and refugees expelled by the regional violence. As the lone rebel signatory to the peace agreement, LJM plays a significant role in the DDPD’s successful implementation. Most notably, leaders from the movement were appointed to positions in the Darfur Regional Authority, the governing body established to implement the peace agreement.
To support the implementation of the DDPD, IRI works with Darfur Regional Authority-appointed LJM members and provides trainings on the skills essential to their duties as legislators. In addition, to help LJM transition into an organized, effective political party, IRI conducts trainings to build the political capacity and knowledge of party members.
Elections and Political Party Work
To ensure that Sudan’s political parties actively participated in the 2010 national elections, as stipulated in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, IRI offered assistance and training for each stage of the electoral process—voter registration, candidate nomination, campaigning and monitoring of elections. The Institute implemented numerous party agent trainings, conducted multi-party candidate nomination process briefings, and held trainings on the most effective ways to run campaigns.
Additionally, the Institute assisted with popular consultation efforts in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile to enable the citizens of those states to renegotiate political, administrative and constitutional arrangements with the central government. Although successful multi-party roundtables were held, the deteriorating security situation in both states forced an end to the effort.
