When elections test democracy: Youth, digital space, and accountability across Africa

Elections across Africa are moments of both democratic possibility and democratic pressure. In a recent webinar ahead of the Global Democracy Coalition Africa Regional Forum 2026, civic leaders explored how young people are responding to these tensions – mobilizing communities, confronting digital repression, and defending democratic accountability across the continent. Elections at a critical democratic moment Across Africa, elections remain a cornerstone of democratic governance. There are moments when citizens exercise political rights, shape leadership, and hold institutions accountable. Yet they are also moments when democratic systems face heightened pressure. During electoral periods, civic space can narrow, political tensions intensify, [...]

2026-03-16T15:17:25+00:0016th March 2026|

Interview with Josh Lerner, Co-Executive Director, People Powered

In my consultations on global democracy over the past year, people repeatedly pointed to mistrust in institutions, a disconnect between elites and citizens, and the sense that democracy doesn’t deliver as key drivers of democratic erosion. Participation is often presented as the magic bullet on the assumption that more participation naturally builds trust. To dig into when participation actually builds trust and when it fails to do so, I sat down with Josh Lerner, co-director of People Powered, who is the natural person to ask about participatory democracy. How do you define participation? There are lots of definitions, and they [...]

2026-03-16T15:16:59+00:0012th March 2026|

Rebuilding Ukraine: Integrity, business, and the hard trade-offs

As Ukraine continues to navigate the realities of war and the long road toward reconstruction, questions about integrity are no longer abstract. They sit at the center of how markets function, how reconstruction funds are used, and how businesses make decisions in environments shaped by uncertainty and risk. In a recent episode of the AccountabiliTea Podcast, Sofiia Sapihura (Anti-Corruption Studies Consultant & Researcher) joined Cheri-Leigh Erasmus (Co-CEO, Accountability Lab) to unpack findings from the report, Leveraging Integrity for Ukraine’s Reconstruction: The Role of Ethical Businesses.  Drawing on interviews with companies across sectors, the research looks beyond traditional anti-corruption narratives to examine [...]

2026-02-24T10:59:11+00:0020th February 2026|

Meeting the moment – from disruption to recombination

This brief reflects on how Accountability Lab responded in practice in 2025 during the year following the  Democracy, Rights and Governance (DRG) aid cuts. It documents a set of choices made under constraint—about where to act, how to stay connected, and what capacities mattered most when familiar assumptions no longer held. What follows distills a small set of postures and practices that proved consequential when conditions tightened. They are offered not as a model to replicate, but as grounded signals drawn from lived experience about how democratic work is sustained when clarity, funding, and institutional stability cannot be assumed. How [...]

2026-01-20T09:56:29+00:0020th January 2026|

Their examples point the way: Celebrating the thirty+ groups (so far!) in the Civil Society Wayfinder campaign

As big donors and NGOs work to reimagine this sector, we’re celebrating groups whose approaches we believe already embody the principles emerging in high-level discussions and reports, such as an investment in youth leadership, a focus on narrative power, and the development of stronger information ecosystems and decentralized funding networks. 

2026-03-16T08:40:18+00:0018th December 2025|

AL is hiring a Data and Research Associate

Position Title: Data and Research Associate (Business Development & Civic Strength Partners Implementation) Location: Remote or hybrid (preferably in a country where Accountability Lab operates) Reports to: Global Head of Development (matrix report to Civil Strength Partners Lead) Type: Full-time, 12-month renewable contract About Accountability Lab Accountability Lab (AL) is a global translocal network that supports active citizens, responsible leaders, and accountable institutions. We work across 10 countries to build creative, sustainable, and people-centred tools for accountability, integrity, and open governance. Our initiatives - such as Integrity Icon, Civic Action Teams (CivActs), and Civic Strength Partners (CSP) - amplify local [...]

2025-12-17T08:57:30+00:0017th December 2025|

Reimagining democracy support in times of crisis

The recent "When Aid Fades" report by the Global Democracy Coalition serves as a stark reminder that funding cuts to civil society aren't just numbers on a spreadsheet. They represent a systematic weakening of the global democracy ecosystem—one that has stripped protections from human rights defenders, undermined independent media, and emboldened authoritarian regimes that now operate with fewer external checks on repression. Understanding the Scale of the Crisis At Accountability Lab, our Global Aid Freeze Tracker has captured the human dimension of this shock. What began as a quick snapshot for our community evolved into a comprehensive survey including hundreds [...]

2025-12-11T11:01:01+00:0011th December 2025|

The future of governance support depends on what we choose to see

Rebalancing toward the relationships, translation work, and bilingual soft infrastructure that make democratic practice possible.   Across conversations with practitioners, funders, researchers, and colleagues working on democracy, governance and civic space, the same diagnosis keeps surfacing. It’s no longer tentative; it’s becoming a quiet consensus: We need to rebalance away from technocratic prescriptions and toward supporting the connective, coalition-building work that keeps societies stitched together. This is not nostalgia for a pre-aid freeze era, nor a push for a new narrative cycle. It is an invitation to see the soft infrastructure and the people—invisible weavers—who maintain civic space in motion [...]

2025-12-10T10:53:27+00:0010th December 2025|

Leading with purpose: reflections on my journey with Accountability Lab Mali

As I prepare to transition from my role as Country Director at Accountability Lab Mali, I find myself filled with deep gratitude and reflection. This journey has been one of purpose, growth, and connection, with incredible people and communities who continually remind me why integrity, empathy, and collaboration matter so profoundly in the work we do. Discovering Strength Through Community When I look back, I’m most proud of the community we built together, a team bound not just by a shared mission, but by a genuine sense of belonging and belief in change. Through countless brainstorming sessions, “Pause and Reflect” [...]

2025-11-25T14:49:46+00:0025th November 2025|

Introducing our new Country Director in Mali

Accountability Lab Mali is announcing a leadership transition as our current Country Director, Doussouba Konaté, steps down from her role. After several years of consistent service to a growing team, Ms. Konaté is passing the responsibilities to Deputy Director Habibou Diaou. Ms. Konaté joined Accountability Lab in 2018 and has made significant contributions to the development and influence of the organization in Mali and the surrounding region. Under her leadership, AL Mali has strengthened its foundations, diversified its partnerships, and enhanced efforts to promote integrity and citizen participation through inclusive initiatives. She will officially step down on November 14, 2025, [...]

2025-11-14T06:38:36+00:0014th November 2025|
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