NDI ContextAnalysisTool Proof F

CONTEXT
ANALYSIS
TOOL
National Democratic Institute

The National Democratic Institute (NDI) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, nongovernmental organi-
zation that responds to the aspirations of people around the world to live in democratic societ-
ies that recognize and promote basic human rights.
Since its founding in 1983, NDI and its local partners have worked to support and strengthen
democratic institutions and practices by strengthening political parties, civic organizations
and parliaments, safeguarding elections, and promoting citizen participation, openness and
accountability in government.
With staff members and volunteer political practitioners from more than 100 nations, NDI
brings together individuals and groups to share ideas, knowledge, experiences and expertise.
Partners receive broad exposure to best practices in international democratic development
that can be adapted to the needs of their own countries. NDI’s multinational approach rein-
forces the message that while there is no single democratic model, certain core principles are
shared by all democracies.
The Institute’s work upholds the principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights. It also promotes the development of institutionalized channels of communication among
citizens, political institutions, and elected officials, and strengthens their ability to improve the
quality of life for all citizens. For more information about NDI, please visit www.ndi.org.
Copyright © National Democratic Institute (NDI) 2014. All rights reserved. Portions of this work
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National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The National Democratic Institute (NDI) is indebted to all the individuals who helped bring
this document to fruition. This guide is based on a draft developed by Anna Larson and in-
corporates various contributions from Sefakor Ashiagbor and Nicholas Benson. Abdou Diouf,
Rima Kawas, Alexey Khlebnikov and Xiaoyun Shen from the University of Minnesota’s Hum-
phrey School of Public Affairs helped pilot some of the approaches included in this guide and
provided helpful feedback. In addition, the following NDI staff provided useful insights on draft
versions of the guide: Francesca Binda, Leslie Campbell, Laura Jewett, and Lisa McLean.
The Institute gratefully acknowledges the support of the National Endowment for Democracy,
which provided funding for this project.
National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool ii

PREFACE
Political party assistance is undergoing a transition. In recent years, a growing number of im-
plementers have become involved in party assistance, and donors who had previously been re-
luctant to support these programs have expressed a new interest in the sector. These develop-
ments present challenges as well as opportunities. Broader recognition of party development
as a critical element of democracy support is long overdue. However, it has been tempered by
concerns about poor public perceptions of political parties in both emerging and established
democracies, the need to better demonstrate results, and frustration over the slow pace of par-
ty reform in many countries. Simply put, while party assistance has greater legitimacy in the
democracy support community, there is also increased awareness of, and concern about some
of the challenges involved in supporting party reform. At the same time, the increased variety
and interest in the party assistance community creates greater opportunities for dialogue re-
garding emerging trends, lessons learned, and challenges facing the sector. The Political Party
Peer Network – an informal network of party assistance providers and donors – is serving as
one forum for some of these discussions.
For more than 30 years, NDI has worked with democratic parties in over 90 countries around
the world to create more open political environments in which citizens can actively participate
in the democratic process. While party assistance has always been at the core of its mandate,
over the years the Institute has adapted the assistance it provides based on new trends in party
organizing, shifting political landscapes, the needs of its partners, and an ever increasing body
of knowledge and expertise. Today, more complex programs, increasingly diverse operating
contexts and approaches, and the quest to improve monitoring and evaluation require assis-
tance providers to update the tools and frameworks they once used to design and evaluate their
work. Similar efforts are underway across various sectors in international development.
The Will, Space, Capacity Framework is part of NDI’s efforts to meet the challenges of a new era
in party assistance. The framework is designed to help donors, assistance providers and evalu-
ators consider how formal and informal rules and institutions, the general political environ-
ment, and other factors influence political will and opportunities for party reform in different
contexts. This has implications for how theories of change are framed, program strategies are
developed, expectations are set about the likely pace and type of reforms in different operating
environments, and program successes and shortcomings are analyzed. While the framework
does not offer instant solutions to the various complexities of party assistance, it should help
readers gain new insights into the obstacles to and possible approaches for supporting the de-
velopment of more effective and inclusive parties.
The Institute is grateful to those who helped bring the framework to fruition.
Kenneth Wollack Ivan Doherty

President Senior Associate
Director of Political Party Programs
National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii
PREFACE iii
CONTEXT ANALYSIS 1
Introduction 1
The Will, Space, Capacity Framework 2
What Information is Needed and Why? 3
Data Collection 5
Data Analysis 12
APPENDICES 19
Appendix 1: Framework of Research Questions 19
Appendix 2: Interview Guide 27
BIBLIOGRAPHY 31
FIGURES
Figure 1: The Will, Space, Capacity Framework 3
Figure 2: Components of Will, Space and Capacity 4
Figure 3: Context Analysis 12
TABLES
Table 1: Sampling Guide for Key Informant Interviews 6
Table 2: Sampling Guide for Expanded Interviews 7
Table 3: Problem Analysis 16
TEXTBOXES
Textbox 1: How This Tool Builds on Existing Approaches 2
Textbox 2: Basic Tips for Qualitative Interviews 8
Textbox 3: Party Systems and Cross-cutting Themes 12
National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool iv

CONTEXT ANALYSIS
INTRODUCTION
In recent years, questions have arisen about how party assistance can be better tailored to dif-
ferent operating contexts, address or take into greater account some of the underlying factors
that shape party behavior, and be more effectively monitored and evaluated. More complex
programs, increasingly diverse operating contexts, and the quest for improved monitoring and
evaluation require assistance providers to update the tools and frameworks they use to design
and evaluate their work. This context analysis tool, developed as a companion to the Political
Party Programming Guide, is designed to help meet that challenge. It is primarily intended for
use by assistance providers and others who may be involved in context analyses for party sup-
port. While some types of assessments focus on identifying the key characteristics of a party
system or the individual parties operating within it, this tool outlines a broader approach. It
prompts users to not only consider how parties in a given environment behave but also urges
them to examine the underlying factors that influence party functioning. Through a broader
analysis of their operating context, users should be better placed to understand the root causes
of democratic deficits in parties and the party system as a whole, identify more strategic inter-
ventions, and establish more realistic outcomes for programs.
This tool is grounded in the Will, Space, Capacity Framework outlined in the Political Party
Programming Guide. In addition, as Textbox 1 illustrates, it draws upon a number of existing
tools and approaches, including Drivers of Change, Power Analysis, the Political Party Assess-
ment Tool, and political economy analysis. Recognizing that assistance providers operate un-
der varying conditions, it outlines three different options for implementation. Based on the
human resources, time, and funding available, users can choose one or more of the following:
a desk study; limited key informant interviews; and more comprehensive interviews to col-
lect the information required to analyze the operating context. In addition, it outlines general
questions for use in identifying and prioritizing democracy deficits, as well as more detailed is-
sues that should be considered when examining the underlying causes of identified democracy
problems. Thus the tool can accommodate two types of programming situations: instances in
which specific problems have yet to be identified, and those in which a particular problem has
already been selected as the focus of an intervention.
This context analysis tool is not intended as a framework to be rigidly applied across all country
contexts. Instead, it provides a basis for political economy analysis by outlining example ques-
tions that can and should be modified on a case by case basis. However, it attempts to adhere
to the following key principles that should be applicable in any situation:
1. The motivations, interests and incentives that influence various political actors, as well
as the political, historical and economic institutions that affect how politics is done, are
all critical to the understanding of any context and how change occurs within it;
2. One of the best ways to source this information is through multiple in-depth conversa-
tions (semi-structured interviews) with people who have first hand, unparalleled knowl-
edge of the context (i.e., local political actors and activists), adhering to ethical principles
of good research; and
National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 1

3. Party programming can be better informed and more effective as a result of collecting
and analyzing this information at the planning stage.
The remaining sections of this tool provide an overview of the Will, Space, Capacity Framework,
describe the types of information needed for context analysis, outline suggested methods for
collecting the information outlined in the framework, and provide tips for analyzing the data
gathered. The Political Party Programming Guide, the companion to this tool, provides addi-
tional details on the Will, Space, Capacity Framework and how to use it in designing and man-
aging party programs.
Textbox 1: How This Tool Builds on Existing Approaches

Power Analysis: Primarily used by the Swedish International Development Agency, power
analysis emphasizes “the links between human rights, democracy and poverty reduc-
tion; formal versus informal institutions and agents, and the importance of process.”1 It is
designed to help donors identify strategies for intervention that take into account political
considerations and the interests of elites, rather than focusing solely on technical needs
and solutions. Adapted for political party programming, this includes examining a com-
bination of formal and informal processes and how they impact political behavior. For
instance, examining whether formal, constitutionally-guaranteed human rights increase
the ability and willingness among women and/or other marginalized groups to participate
in political processes and if not, why not, could reveal information about the strength of
informal norms and institutions that have a greater effect on marginalized groups than
constitutional provisions.
Drivers of Change: Pioneered by the United Kingdom’s Department for International De-
velopment, this approach emphasizes understanding political contexts in order to identify
how change occurs in a given environment and which actors facilitate this change based
on structural and institutional conditions. Applied to party programming, this includes
examining the political, social and economic contexts in which parties operate, with a
particular focus on structural and institutional conditions. This can lead to a better under-
standing of how change might occur and inform more targeted programming.
Political Party Assessment Tool: Developed under a grant from the United States Agency
for International Development, this detailed set of guidelines recommends that a team
of specialists conduct preparatory desk studies and in-country interviews to examine the
political environment in a given country. This tool draws upon some of the same principles,
but outlines a more condensed approach and links it to the Will, Space, Capacity Frame-
work outlined in this publication and the Political Party Programming Guide.
THE WILL, SPACE, CAPACITY FRAMEWORK
In democratic systems, the primary role of a political party is to aggregate and represent
citizen interests. A range of local factors – such as social norms, history, and individual in-
centives – influence how parties interpret this role and what citizens expect of them. The
framework outlined below focuses on the key functions through which political parties fulfill
their representative role. Rather than putting forward a rigid set of criteria or benchmarks for
party functioning, it outlines core principles and competencies that parties require in order
to effectively perform their representative functions. Thus, it is flexible enough to be applied
1. Helena Bjuremalm. Power Analysis: Experiences and Challenges. (Stockholm: Swedish International Development Agency,
2006), 5.

in diverse environments and to political parties of varying size, ideology, membership base,
and age. In addition, it incorporates contextual factors and key drivers that influence party
behavior.
Figure 1: The Will, Space, Capacity Framework
Functions
Attributes
Drivers
The framework shown in Figure 1 has three levels that build on one another. They include:
• The functions – proposing policies, competing in elections, and governing – that parties
should perform in democratic systems;
• The attributes, including competencies (technical skills and resources) and principles (val-
ues) that parties require in order to effectively fulfill their functions; and
• Three key influences or drivers – political space, political will, and capacity – that shape
party behavior.
Ideally, parties perform their functions with the aim of representing the interests of their con-
stituencies. The extent to which they play their representative role is based on their commit-
ment to democratic principles and their access to technical skills and resources. The drivers
outline the underlying factors that cause parties to behave the way they do. Loosely, these three
concepts – functions, attributes and drivers – relate to what parties do, how they do it, and why
they behave the way they do.
WHAT INFORMATION IS NEEDED AND WHY?
An important first step in designing a program strategy is to develop an understanding of the

operating context. This involves examining the overall political environment in a given country,
identifying the main democratic deficits in its parties and party system, and determining the
underlying factors or drivers that shape party behavior.

The Will, Space, Capacity Framework outlined above – and described in greater detail in the
Political Party Programming Guide – shows that several factors influence how political parties
interpret and fulfill their representative role. These drivers can be grouped under three head-
ings: political space, political will, and capacity. Political space describes the environment par-
ties operate in and how they interact with it. Political will refers to the incentives that influence
both political parties and the individual actors within them. Finally, capacity refers to the nuts
and bolts of party organizing and activity. Figure 2 outlines how each of these categories breaks
down further. It also recognizes significant overlap between the three.
Figure 2: Components of Will, Space and Capacity
• The formal &

• Personal incentive informal institutional
structures context
Will Space
• Organizational • The historical context
values & priorities Party
• The social context
Behavior
Capacity
• Individual skills
• The parties’
» Organizational management
» Strategic connections
» Access to financial resources
This tool suggests that by collecting and analyzing the kind of information detailed in Figure
2, and further highlighted in Appendix 1, assistance providers will have a better understanding
of why party systems and parties behave the way they do in a given country context. Conduct-
ing such a context analysis prior to program design should help practitioners develop a more
nuanced understanding of the causes of democratic weaknesses in a given context and poten-
tial risks to program strategies, allowing for more effective interventions. These categories of
information are not exhaustive and can be altered according to the requirements of different
country contexts. However, given the importance of developing a broad picture of the political
environment, all categories should be included in an analysis of any context. While users may
consider focusing on those categories they consider the most important, this runs the risk of
imposing preconceived – and not necessarily accurate – notions about what is ‘important’ onto
the analysis before it is underway.
Different teams face various scenarios, not only in the timeframes available to them for con-
ducting context analyses but also in the starting points for their analyses. Ideally, all context
analyses would begin with a blank slate so that a broad picture of the political environment can
be developed. In this case, assistance providers would start with an examination of the wider
political context; among other things, they would examine to what extent parties propose poli-
cies, compete in elections, and contribute to governance. Second, they would move on to as-
sess the ways in which parties are organized and their commitment to democratic values. (The
Political Party Programming Guide provides additional information on these issues.) At some

point during these two steps, key deficits in party activities and/or the party system would
likely emerge. Having identified these problems, they would then begin a third step of deeper
analysis, examining their root causes – the drivers of party behavior, which often constitute
questions of political will, political space, or capacity.
However, assistance providers may be tasked with addressing a particular pre-defined problem
or deficit, such as the paucity of women in party leadership. In this instance, analysis would
begin at the third step, taking the defined problem and examining its root causes through the
Will, Space, Capacity Framework. The sections below provide additional information on data
collection and analysis.
DATA COLLECTION
Suggested Research Methods

This section outlines three suggested methods for collecting the information described above.
For teams with limited time or resources, it proposes a desk study. Where time and other re-
sources permit, it recommends working with targeted key informants or conducting more ex-
tensive interviews in addition to the desk study. Alternatively, teams could begin with the desk
study and then supplement the information with interviews, once time and other resources
allow. Each approach is outlined is greater detail below. No context is ever static and context
analyses should ideally be updated on a regular basis. One option for ensuring that analyses
remain valid would be to conduct follow-on key informant interviews at six month, annual, or
other appropriate intervals.
In all three approaches, a small number of parties will need to be chosen as subjects for analy-
sis. This sample should include parties that represent most, if not all, key interest groups in
the country in question. Program teams could compile a comprehensive list of political par-
ties, group them into categories relevant to the context (e.g., geographic/ethnic, ideological)
and then choose a sample – ideally between 6 and 12 – that reflects the various main schisms
in the country.2 However, the sample of parties examined during the context analysis will not
necessarily correspond to those eventually selected for assistance, and must be considered a
representative sample of the political context rather than a list of potential future partners. As
outlined in the Political Party Programming Guide, once the context analysis has been con-
ducted, it can be used alongside existing organizational guidelines to determine which parties
to work with in a given country.
Desk Study
Ideally – but not necessarily – the desk study should be carried out in-country. This should
make it easier to draw upon the perspectives of local staff; where they exist, they are a valu-
able source of both institutional memory and contextual understanding. The study could draw
upon secondary sources, such as:
• Party documentation;
• Country constitutions and electoral laws;
• Freedom House Freedom in the World reports;
• Human Rights Watch reports;
• Transparency International reports, including the Corruption Perceptions Index;
2. For an example of guidance on selecting parties, consult Scott Morgenstern and Andrew Green. Political Party
Assessment Tool. (Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh, 2011), 9.

• Amnesty International reports;
• International Crisis Group reports;
• The World Bank’s World Development Indicators;
• The Human Development Index;
• The Gender Inequality Index;
• International Parliamentary Union (IPU) reports;
• Local and international media sources; and
• Country analyses by organizations such as International IDEA and NIMD, where these are
available.
In some cases, country experts in the academic, diplomatic, development or other communi-
ties may be willing and available to share their perspectives via phone, Skype or other means.
However, in general, conversations with individuals directly involved in politics are best con-
ducted through face to face interviews, during which it is easier to establish a rapport, discuss
sensitive issues, and read body language.
Key Informant Interviews

These interviews should be conducted with up to 20 key informants, including party leaders
or high level party officials; rank and file party members; legislative staff; representatives of
the body responsible for registering parties; staff members from elections watchdog or other
democracy-promoting CSOs or think tanks; and representatives of other international democ-
racy-promoting agencies, such as IFES, IRI or the German Stiftungen. Table 1 outlines an illus-
trative sampling guide for approximately 20 interviews.
Table 1: Sampling Guide for Key Informant Interviews
Number of
Respondent interviews
Party leaders/high level officials 6
Rank and file members (ideally representing diverse groups, 5
especially those from marginalized communities, e.g., women,
youth, persons with disabilities, LGBT individuals)
Parliamentary/legislative staff 1
Party registration body 1
Elections watchdog/democracy CSO 1
International democracy-promoting agency 1
The illustrative samples in Tables 1 and 2 do not include all party leaders or members of each
party to be studied. Qualitative interviews with even a small number of party respondents,
conducted well, will likely provide critical information that may not be available through sec-
ondary material. For example, a member may describe dissatisfaction with their party’s deci-
sionmaking processes and give details about the root of the problem; likewise, a senior official
may complain about the leader’s personalization of the party and lack of delegation of key
responsibilities to senior staff. While rank and file members ordinarily might not be considered
‘key informants’ in a rapid assessment of this kind, here, their contribution is crucial: they will

be able to indicate opinions about the party leadership’s relationship with ordinary people, and
hint at the incentive structures that determine how the party is run.
Expanded Interviews
This approach could include up to 110 interviews with a broad spectrum of party representa-
tives, government officials, parliamentarians, think tanks, CSOs, and international donors. This
would provide a much more comprehensive picture of the political environment than the desk
study or key informant interviews outlined above. Table 2 provides an illustrative sampling
guide for this level of interviews.
Table 2: Sampling Guide for Expanded Interviews
Approximate number
Respondent of interviews
Party leaders/high level officials at national level 12-24
Rank and file members in the country’s capital (representing 18-36
diverse groups, especially those from marginalized communities,
e.g., women, youth, persons with disabilities, LGBT individuals)
Party officials in regions 6-12
Rank and file members in regions (representing diverse groups, 12-24
especially those from marginalized communities, e.g., women,
youth, persons with disabilities, LGBT individuals)
Parliamentary/legislative staff 3
Party registration body 1
CSOs (elections watchdog/democracy, marginalized groups, 2
service delivery/issue-based)
International democracy-promoting agency 3
International donor agency 3-5
This sample provides a much broader range of respondents within parties both at the head-
quarters level and in regional offices, allowing analysts to gather data about the nature of par-
ties’ connections with regional support bases. A cross-section of respondents from within par-
ties should be selected, representing different levels of authority and commitment to party ac-
tivities. Where they exist, field offices may already have a comprehensive network of contacts
within parties, and these may be drawn upon either as respondents themselves or as people
who might suggest other respondents. Care should be taken, however, to ensure that at least
half of the respondents representing each party have had no previous involvement with the or-
ganization conducting or commissioning the context analysis. Often, interesting comparisons
can be made between the information provided by former program participants, for example,
and those who have had no prior contact with the organization.
In addition to including party representatives with varying levels of seniority, different social
groups should be represented in the sample. While some parties in certain contexts are ethni-
cally homogenous and involve very few women, ideally, the sample for each party should be
as diverse as possible in order to capture the views of women, men, a variety of age brackets,
various ethnicities, and different marginalized groups.
The differentiation between rank and file members based in country capitals and those in re-
gions also allows for potential disaggregation of data along urban/rural or urban/semi-urban

lines – a distinction important in countries where, for example, education and other services
are concentrated in the center. Finally, the addition of donor respondents here adds an inter-
national perspective: donors often conduct detailed assessments of the political environment
themselves and may be able to shed light on their understanding of how politics works in the
country. This will also enable a useful comparison of how donors view themselves and their
work in the country, and how their presence and contributions are viewed by those receiving
assistance.
For both the key informant interviews and the more extensive qualitative research, semi-struc-
tured interviews are recommended. These are conversational interviews guided by themes but
not strictly conforming to a set of questions. As a result, they are based on interview guides
that – unlike structured questionnaires – allow the respondent to determine, to some extent,
the content of the interview. Within semi-structured interviews, questions often begin in a very
general manner – for example, “Please describe how you first decided to get involved in poli-
tics” or “Tell me about your role in the New Democratic Party.” While these can be followed
by ‘probes’ to help steer the conversation, it is very much left to the respondent to determine
what information is given. This facilitates a more in-depth examination of political issues and
opinions that could be missed by a simple questionnaire or structured format. It also allows
the researcher to examine interview transcripts and determine a respondent’s priorities or key
concerns, which may be referred to without prompting or guidance from the researcher. Allow-
ing the respondent to express these concerns of his or her own accord, rather than in response
to a set of prescribed questions that may be influenced by the researcher’s preconceptions, is
likely to reflect the views of the respondent more accurately. While group interviews can also
be conducted using this method, transcription becomes more complicated in a group setting
and the dynamics of the interview can change. For example, those who may have spoken up in
an individual interview may be dominated by more senior party officials present in a group set-
ting and remain silent. For these reasons, individual interviews are more suitable for this type
of analysis. (A sample interview guide is included in Appendix 2. In addition, Textbox 2 outlines
some basic tips for qualitative interviews.)
In any given interview, ideally, there should be no more than three people present: the respon-
dent, the researcher and a note-taker/translator. The researcher should take the lead in ask-
ing questions and should take notes when possible. The note-taker/translator should also take
notes as far as possible, although this will depend very much on whether he or she is in fact
translating or is simply taking notes. In an ideal scenario, where the researcher is fluent in a lo-
cal language, the note-taker can focus solely on capturing as much of the interview in writing
as possible. Notes should be transcribed as soon after the interview as possible. This method,
avoiding any kind of recording device, often allows respondents to feel more comfortable giv-
ing detailed information on what can be sensitive political issues – for example, ethnicity. On
a practical note, it also makes the process of transcription shorter and easier, as transcribing
from tape recordings can be laborious. If a recording device is used, however, it is paramount
that the respondent’s consent for its use is given before the interview begins – over and above
the consent they have given for the interview itself to take place.

Textbox 2: Basic Tips for Qualitative Interviews
Conducting conversational interviews that generate useful data is not necessarily as
straightforward as it sounds, particularly given that respondents are largely able to define
the topics of conversation themselves. Nevertheless, a few guiding principles can ensure
that an interview is well managed.
1. Adapt your approach to the cultural context

Cultural factors may influence how meetings are scheduled, how interviewers and ques-
tions are perceived, who participates in the conversation, and how the conversation
unfolds. Consider the cultural context, including issues of hierarchy, gender, communi-
cation styles, and other factors, and adapt your approach accordingly. This may involve
thinking through relatively simple adjustments – dress codes, for example – as well as
more difficult issues surrounding the potential composition of the interview team.
2. Use open-ended rather than closed questions

Because the aim is to elicit as long and detailed a response as possible, questions that
invite a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ response are not helpful in conversational interviews. Questions
beginning with “how,” “please describe,” or “tell me about” often lead to much more
in-depth answers.
3. Avoid leading questions

There is little point in trying to coax a particular answer out of a respondent, if the aim
is truly to solicit his or her opinion. Avoid asking questions that already have an answer
implied, such as, “Do you think the recent reforms to party law will really change things
on the ground for parties?”
4. If a respondent struggles to answer an open-ended question, follow up with ‘probes’

Ideally, an open-ended question such as, “Please describe the current political system”
will lead to a detailed answer with all the information you need, demonstrating the
respondent’s priorities and immediate choices of what to say. If he or she struggles, talk
about tangential issues or follow up with probes – short prompts that guide the respon-
dent in the rough direction of the themes you want to follow. Following the example
above, a probe might be, “Tell me about the electoral law in particular,” or something
similar. The interview guide below gives further examples of probes.
5. Avoid the temptation to add your own observations and thoughts
While there are places for these in other kinds of interviews, qualitative interviews gen-
erally do not include references to the researcher’s own opinions. The aim by the end of
the interview is to have gained a solid grasp of the respondent’s perspective; whether
or not it is ‘right’ is less important.
Organizing the Data Collection Process

This section describes a two-step process for gathering the information outlined in Figure 2
above. In addition, based on the concepts outlined in steps 1 and 2 below, Appendix 1 provides
a framework of research questions that could be considered during desk research or examined
during semi-structured interviews. A sample interview guide is included in Appendix 2. As a
reminder, depending on the time, travel budget, and staff resources available, analysts may
choose to conduct desk research alone or to combine it with limited or expanded semi-struc-
tured interviews.

Understandably, desktop information will be more readily available for some countries than
others. Further, it is always important to consider a combination of perspectives in order to
reach balanced conclusions. For some countries – especially those where freedoms of expres-
sion and organization are curtailed – it is likely to be more difficult to find balanced or detailed
sources through desktop research. Special efforts may be required to round out the informa-
tion. For purposes of analysis, the perspectives of those whose views align with the research
team and those that diverge are equally valuable. Moreover, depending on the operating con-
text, some lines of inquiry will prove more fruitful than others. For instance, in situations where
political parties are just emerging, party structures are likely to be loosely defined. As such, it
is likely to be difficult (and possibly less relevant) to pursue detailed information about those
systems and processes.
Step 1: Gathering Basic Contextual Information

Assuming limited previous knowledge of a given country, analysis should begin with the com-
pilation of basic information about the formal institutional framework, historic trends in state-
citizen interactions, social legacies, and institutional incentive structures. Most of this infor-
mation is likely to be found in secondary resources with relative ease. More specifically, this
includes:
Formal institutional context: Political system, electoral system, legal framework (including
the constitution and party law), parliamentary rules of procedure, judicial system, interpar-
ty relations, civil society organizations and activity, political calendar, media freedoms. Who
makes the de jure rules of the game?
Historical events, trends and patterns in state-citizen interactions: Prevalence of peaceful pro-
tests, other forms of nonviolent contestation, taxation as a proportion of GDP, conscription, civil
war. What role, if any, have parties played in these interactions? At what points and how or why
has political change occurred in the past? How might the context change in the next 20 years?
Social legacies: Ethnic tensions, security environment, prevailing gender norms, marginaliza-
tion of certain social groups, regional differentiation in terms of citizen rights and duties.
Step 2: Collecting Information on Party Behavior and Other Contextual Factors
In the second step, additional information should be collected on party functioning as well as
other factors that could influence party behavior. The level of information available through sec-
ondary resources will vary from one country to another. In instances where interviews are con-
ducted, the material gathered in step 1 and the early stages of step 2 can help inform briefing
materials for the interview team. In some cases, analysts may note differences between their own
conclusions derived from desk research and the points raised by respondents. This will provide
some indication of respondents’ priorities and interests. Data collection at this stage includes
information on the informal institutional context, incentive structures that affect party leaders’
decision making, as well as party rules and practices in such areas as policy development, leader-
ship selection, and access to resources. Additional information is provided below.
Informal institutional context: Prevalence of patron-client networks, uniformity of law en-

forcement, historical patterns of party decision making (i.e., leadership control), party activity
within parliament, interparty relationships now and over time. Who makes the de facto rules
of the game?
Individual values and interests: What affects party leaders’ or key actors’ decision-making
processes? To what extent are they committed to reform and why? What motivates them and
other party members to be involved in programming – questions of ambition, standing within
the party, personal policy interests, allegiance to key interest groups, perks of the training itself

(e.g., per diems, where these are paid)? What motivates leaders and members to be involved in
politics in general?
Organizational priorities and values: Party ideology and interests. How does the party define
the constituencies whose interests it hopes to serve? What political principles does it stand for?
Internal functioning/accountability: How a party is run. Who has control of party finances,
where does the money come from, and what impact does this have on how decisions are made?
How are party leaders (e.g., the secretary general) selected? Levels of internal accountability – to
what extent are rank and file members informed of or able to participate in party decisions? To
what extent are party executives and mid-level officials able to influence party decisions, how
are these executives selected, and how are internal elections for leadership positions conduct-
ed? What is the party’s relationship with members and how does it seek to assure its relevance
based on member interests, if at all? What is the frequency of party conferences or congresses
and who is invited? What is the role played by the party’s parliamentary members within party
functions, and how are the party’s electoral candidates selected?
Policy/platform development: How are policies/platforms determined? What are the main in-
fluencing factors? What about the policy-making process as an indicator of will – how does the
process seek to canvass public or constituent opinion, if at all?
Formal organization: Internal structures, management, institutional frameworks, levels of ca-

pacity of individual members and of various party officials as a whole (e.g., for information
gathering, platforms, legislation, know-how, strategy, policy).
History of political influence: Where and how have various parties made a difference in the
political environment in the past, and how does this impact their perceived confidence and
capacity to do so again?
Strategic connections: How are different parties placed in terms of their access to influential
people? Consider party relationships with civil society/trade unions, the military, the business
community, etc. These could be in the form of patron-client relationships or could include
the ability to mobilize support, but might also simply be described as knowing people in high
places, having access to information flows, or being well placed to respond to issues in a timely
manner.
Access to resources: To what extent are parties able to finance their activities through mem-
bership fees, individual donors, and government assistance? Sustainability of these sources of
funding, capacity within the party to manage funds effectively.
Training: Is the next generation of leaders given encouragement and training, or are they seen
as a threat?
Party relationship with assistance provider: Have party members had any previous engage-
ment or previous training with the assistance provider? What does their previous experience
imply for their likelihood of working with the assistance provider again and their interest in
programs? What about attitudes toward donors? What about other practitioner agencies work-
ing in the same field? What are the levels of coordination? Historical/current relationship with
and views of the U.S.: how does this affect perceptions of the assistance provider?
Once information has been gathered – either through the desk study alone, or through a com-
bination of the desk study and interviews – the data should be analyzed in order to draw con-
clusions about the context and the implications for programming. Here, the focus is primarily
on drawing conclusions from the data through the three-step process outlined in “What In-
formation is Needed and Why” and summarized in Figure 3. The Political Party Programming
Guide provides additional information on program design.

DATA ANALYSIS
Figure 3: Context Analysis
1. Political Context 2. Party Functioning 3. Problem Analysis

Examine the broad Assess the internal Analyze the root
political context, functioning of causes of democratic
including the extent political parties. deficits identified in
to which parties Steps 1 & 2.
propose policies, Consider the extent
compete in elections to which political will
and contribute to space and capacity
governance. influence party
behavior.
Textbox 3: Party Systems and Cross-cutting Themes

Authoritarian/Semi-Authoritarian: Political parties face significant formal and/or informal
restrictions on their operations, including but not limited to unreasonably high thresholds
for registration, and intimidation or harassment of party officials and activists and their
partners (including assistance providers). Elections – if they do occur – repeatedly fea-
ture widespread fraud and produce overwhelmingly large majorities for the ruling party
or incumbent president. Additional democracy deficits may include formal and informal
restrictions on freedom of expression, association and movement, including major limits
on press freedoms.
Single Party Dominant: Political parties face no significant formal and/or informal restric-
tions on their operations and a wide range of democratic freedoms are generally ob-
served. But even in the absence of significant fraud, elections repeatedly return the same
party to power and there is little prospect of another party forming government in the
near to medium-term future. Due to the overwhelming majority held by the ruling party,
opposition parties rarely have enough influence to hold the government to account.
Multiparty Competitive: Elections are frequently competitive, with some history or short
to medium-term prospect of power transitioning from one party to another. Depending on
the context, there may be two or more major parties and a number of medium or smaller
parties that contest elections and shape political discourse. A range of freedoms – includ-
ing association and expression – are observed, allowing citizens to access information
about different political parties and leaders.
Fragile: The political landscape may be characterized by multiple parties with highly vola-
tile bases of support. Party splits may be common and leaders may frequently reinvent
themselves under new party names. There may be significant and unresolved questions
over major framework issues, including the electoral system and how parties should be
regulated. These environments are also marked by uncertainty about the party system and
include backsliding or breakthrough contexts.

Conflict/Conflict-Prone: Due to high levels of polarization or conflict – either recent or
historical – there is a significant risk of a breakout or resumption of violence. This may be
limited to particular parts of the country or the pattern may be geographically diverse.
Political Parties Play Peripheral Roles in Governance: Political parties are allowed to
operate to some extent but only play peripheral roles in political processes. The center of
power for may lie with the military, a royal family, or another structure or institution.
Step 1: Political Context

The first step in processing the data is to describe the general political context, including the
extent to which parties are performing their key functions: competing in elections, proposing
policies, and contributing to governance. Different country contexts have various characteris-
tics that define their party systems. These features affect how parties behave and influence op-
tions for party assistance. It may be helpful to first identify how the party system in the country
in question could be categorized. While there are many ways of categorizing party systems,
for the purposes of this tool, the following loose categories may be helpful in identifying sys-
tems that exhibit certain similarities: authoritarian/semi-authoritarian; single party dominant;
and multiparty competitive. In addition to these categories, three cross-cutting themes may
be helpful: fragile, conflict/conflict-prone and political parties play peripheral roles in gover-
nance. Textbox 4 provides further information on each of these categories. In addition, the Po-
litical Party Programming Guide outlines common challenges and possible strategies in each
of these environments.
Based on the data gathered:
• What is the general political environment and what roles do parties play in politics?
• To what extent are interparty relations and relationships between political parties and oth-
er state institutions or actors conducive to democratic governance?
• What are the most significant weaknesses in the party system and what common chal-
lenges do parties face?
If problems in the party system exist or are perceived to exist, they will arise at this stage in the
analysis. Problems internal to parties themselves will likely surface later.
Step 2: Party Functioning

The following questions may be helpful in assessing the data gathered.
To what extent do political parties:
• Propose policies that are representative of their members’ interests?
• Have mechanisms that allow members or supporters to hold their leaders to account?
• Provide opportunities for member/supporter participation in party decision-making pro-

cesses?

To what extent do individual parties have:
• The rules and systems in place for sustaining an organization?
• The organizational structures, systems and skills in place to conduct outreach and cam-
paign effectively?
• The expertise required to research and formulate policy proposals?
This analysis will lead to more detailed conclusions about specific weaknesses in each of the
areas identified above, some of the underlying causes, and possible implications for program-
ming. For example, if a number of branch-level respondents within a party talk about the lack
of information available to them about party activities at headquarters level, then it will be nec-
essary to explore the reasons for this weak connection (as given by respondents and as found
through secondary data). Similarly, if there are structural issues with the party system that are
preventing parties from acting cohesively in parliament, it is important to identify the reasons
for the persistence of these problems.
Step 3: Problem Analysis
The final step of the analysis involves using the data gathered to examine the root causes of
democratic deficits identified during steps 1 and 2. It suggests that they are likely to be the
product of problems with political will, political space, and/or party capacity. It will be neces-
sary at this point to incorporate problem analysis to determine which of these three categories
appears to be the source of the problem identified. (See the Political Party Programming Guide
for additional information on problem analysis.) The following questions may help categorize
the roots of the problem.
Questions for Assessing Political Space
To what extent is the problem caused by environmental factors? Consider the following:
• What formal rules govern and influence party behavior? These may include the electoral
system, legal and constitutional provisions, and parliamentary rules.
• How does the political calendar, including factors like election frequency, conventions, or
other political timetables, impact party behavior?
• What informal rules or customs influence party behavior? For instance, is there a history
of patronage or clientelism? Do tribal, religious, or other traditional power structures play
significant roles in national or regional politics?
• What is the current security environment and how does it affect parties?
• What are the prevailing gender norms and attitudes toward religion? Are there historic eth-
nic or regional tensions, and what is their current state?

Questions for Assessing Political Will
To what extent is the problem caused by a lack of political will? Consider the following:
• What motivates influential party actors? Are they primarily driven by:
»» Financial ambitions;
»» A desire to advance within party structures and build their personal influence; or
»» Ideological or specific policy interests?
• Who controls party decision making and finances, and what does this say about the party’s
organizational culture, including its values and priorities? For instance:
»» To what extent are mid-level officials, and rank and file party members, able to partici-
pate in party decisions?
»» How are party policies and platforms developed and approved?
»» How and with what frequency are party leaders and candidates selected?
Questions for Assessing Party Capacity
To what extent is the problem caused by a lack of capacity? More specifically:
• Do elected officials, party staff, and activists understand their roles and have skills in such
areas as outreach and policy development?
• Does the party have effective internal communications structures, organizational and
member management, and policies?
• Are parties state funded, and if so, how are those funds allocated? Are there any restrictions
on a party’s ability to raise funds?
• How is the party placed in terms of access to information and influential groups and indi-
viduals?
It may be the case that the problem is linked to both space and will, or will and capacity – the
categories are not mutually exclusive. But in linking the problems to these categories, it will be
possible to identify different implications for programming that can be targeted specifically to
deficits in space, will or capacity. Table 3 outlines some examples of how different problems
might be categorized. It illustrates how the type of analysis described here can help inform pro-
gramming, but does not provide specific programming solutions to the problems identified, as
these will vary depending on a wide range of factors.

Table 3: Problem Analysis
Root Causes/Contributing Factors Implications for Programming
Problem: Weak party outreach to branches or limited investment in branch development.
Will:
• Leadership not interested in rural views (stat- Consider strategies making the case to party lead-
ed in x number of interviews with provincial ers that investing in grassroots outreach is worth-
party representatives). while. Leadership needs to be made aware through
credible means (e.g., public opinion research) that
• Historical rift between center and periphery/
the grassroots support base is waning and there
urban-rural divide on levels of education, ac-
may be advantages to including grassroots views
cess to services, etc., perhaps due to central-
in decision making processes.
ized government (desk research).
Space/Capacity:
• Distances too great or funds unavailable to Emphasize low-cost, sustainable ways for parties
make visits (stated in x number of interviews to hold events and conduct outreach outside the
with party officials). capital.
• Lack of government spending on infrastruc-
ture makes communication difficult (desk
research).
Capacity:
• Weak use of technology (stated in x number Providing technology training to headquarters
of interviews with key actors). staff could be useful, but building capacity at the
grassroots level may be more critical.
• Center-periphery divide in technological re-
sources and training (desk research).
Will:
• Political will is lacking as leaders attain posi- Programs to promote internal party reform should
tions through patronage and do not feel they incorporate strategies to increase/shift leaders’ will
need rural support bases (stated in x number for reform.
of interviews with key actors).
• Social legacies of exclusive patronage net-
works, no history of democratic governance.
Problem: Legislative activity is fluid and unpredictable; party activity in parliament is

fragmented or disorganized.
Space:
• Most parliamentarians avoid declaring party Given the limited incentives for parliamentarians
allegiances in order to trade party support for to join and commit to parties, consider options
benefits or cash (stated in x number of inter- that could shift incentive structures or help parties
views with key actors). make themselves more attractive to legislators.
• Candidates for parliamentary elections are
not required to stand as party representa-
tives; parliamentary rules of procedure do not
encourage internal organization/groupings.

Root Causes/Contributing Factors Implications for Programming
Problem: Legislative activity is fluid and unpredictable; party activity in parliament is
fragmented or disorganized.
Capacity:
• Parties do not have the resources to keep par- Work with parties to develop capacities and strate-
liamentarians interested (stated in x number gies (e.g., knowledge and information, strategic
of interviews with key actors). relationships) that could make them more attrac-
tive to parliamentarians.
• Very few parties have access to sustainable
funding sources, e.g., membership fees (desk Engage parties in fundraising, volunteer manage-
research). ment, and party finance reforms.
Space:
• Parties do not have much public support after Consider work with parties and citizens to improve
legacies of war (stated in x number of inter- both the understanding of party roles in a democ-
views with key actors). racy and a parties’ public image. However, note
that negative perceptions of parties may be hard
• Parties have been involved in significant con-
to change.
flict that has occurred within living memory
(desk research).
Space/Will:
• Government is interested in keeping parlia- A weak party system is probably the result of
ment disorganized (stated in x number of broader structural issues in the government (e.g.,
interviews with key actors). centralization of power in the executive). Efforts
to strengthen parties or parliamentary organiza-
• Parliament is less able to provide checks and
tion are likely to face significant challenges and the
balances on government activity if disorga-
pace of reform is likely to be slower than in other
nized, cannot form 2/3 majority to overturn
environments.
presidential decrees (desk research).
In terms of formatting findings into a useful report that can inform programming, options in-
clude narrative reports, presenting key findings in a tabular form (perhaps using the example of
Table 3 as a guide), or using the problem tree approach outlined in the Political Party Program-
ming Guide.
As part of program design, staff should then identify possible strategies for addressing root
causes that may be categorized as issues of political will, space or capacity. Of these, the space
and capacity categories are likely to be the most straightforward; for example, recommenda-
tions may include helping parties advocate for legal reforms and improving their technical
skills, respectively. Addressing issues of political will is more complex and is often directly re-
lated to the other two categories. For example, if parliamentary procedures are reformed to fa-
cilitate greater organization of party groups in the legislature, political will among party leaders
to organize and mobilize around issues might increase as a result. Knowledge of the program-
ming and the political context can be used to brainstorm about how political will within parties
might be impacted – and in doing so, it is often helpful to think in terms of incentives. In a final
report, suggestions for programming in the political will category could be set out in terms of
ways to impact incentive structures that drive decision making within parties.
At some point in the context analysis process, assistance providers may need to determine
whether assistance providers they should be involved in party programming in a given country
and if so, where to focus their efforts. This will involve addressing some of the following ques-
tions (in some cases, some of these questions will be pre-empted by an organization’s previous
history in a country and/or donor priorities).

Is there a meaningful role and space for the assistance provider and its partners?
• Consider what the needs are and whether the assistance provider is well positioned – in
terms of institutional expertise as well as relationships and access – to make a positive con-
tribution.
• What other groups are working with political parties? How can the assistance provider
avoid duplication and complement or supplement those efforts?
• Depending on the environment, consider what risks assistance providers and partners
may face. (This may include exposure to armed conflict, varying degrees of intimidation or
harassment, or even high levels of crime.) What arrangements would need to be made to
provide adequate protection to assistance providers and partners?
• Given the resources available, where should the assistance provider focus its efforts, and
what might progress look like?
In most cases, transformational change in individual parties and the party system as a whole
will not be realistic. What incremental changes would represent the most significant or mean-
ingful impact on the party system or individual parties? Is there one political party that would
be more open to reforms, thereby serving as an example to others? Sometimes smaller parties,
with less to lose, are more willing to embrace change than larger, more established parties.
• For instance, in closed environments, working with democratic forces to explore alterna-
tive methods of outreach and to sustain basic operations within the constraints of their
limited space is likely to be a priority.
• In transition environments, a key focus may be raising awareness among nascent parties
about participating in conversations concerning the regulatory reforms that will impact
them.
• Where groups are marginalized, while the adoption of a quota law may not be realistic in
the short term, given local conditions, increased capacity and awareness/sensitivity could
represent modest yet significant change.

APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1: FRAMEWORK OF RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The following table outlines a framework of research questions that could be the subjects of
desktop research and interviews. Neither the questions nor the broader categories they belong
to are exhaustive, and both can be altered according to the requirements of different country
contexts.
As indicated elsewhere in this publication, desktop information will understandably be more

readily available for some countries than others. Further, it is always important to consider a
combination of perspectives in order to reach balanced conclusions. For some countries – es-
pecially those where freedoms of expression and organization are curtailed – it is likely to be
more difficult to find balanced and/or detailed sources through desktop research. Special ef-
forts may be required to round out the information. For purposes of analysis, the perspectives
of those whose views align with the research team and those that diverge are equally valuable.
Moreover, depending on the operating context, some lines of inquiry will prove more fruitful
than others. For instance, in situations where political parties are just emerging, party struc-
tures are likely to be loosely defined. As such, it is likely to be difficult (and possibly less rel-
evant) to pursue detailed information about those systems and processes.
However, given the importance of developing a broad picture of the political environment, all
categories should be included in an analysis of any context. While users may consider focusing
on those categories they consider the most important, this runs the risk of imposing precon-
ceived – and not necessarily accurate – notions about what is ‘important’ onto the analysis
before it has begun.
The questions are phrased from the perspective of analysts, presenting what they need to know
for the context analysis. Examples of actual interview questions are included in Appendix 2.

Information Needed Secondary Source Suggestions for Desk Study
Formal Institutional Context

• What formal institutional and structural • Internal documentation;
conditions define the political system in
• Internal local staff knowledge;
country X?
• International Crisis Group (ICG) reports;
• How would country X be categorized
according to the following party system • Local/international political think tank or research
types? Authoritarian/semi-authoritarian, group papers;
single party dominant, multiparty • Academic journal articles;
competitive.
• IPU reports;
• What cross-cutting themes (e.g., conflict/
conflict prone, party marginalization, • Freedom House country analyses;
transitional) characterize the context? • U.S. Department of State Human Rights Reports;
• How have these conditions come to exist, • International IDEA’s databases on electoral system
through what processes, when, and by design, quotas, and party finance;
whom were they created/influenced?
• Parliamentary/legislative staff (for rules of
• How do these conditions affect parties procedure);
specifically?
• Media coverage of politics and politicians; and
• Government documents, e.g., the Ministry of
Justice’s website for legal gazettes.
Informal Institutional Context

• To what extent do social groups (e.g., • Internal local staff knowledge;
those based on ethnicity, tribe, religion,
• ICG reports;
language, geographical region, class,
caste, wealth) interact with one another • Freedom House country analyses;
(e.g., through intermarriage, the existence • Local/international think tank or research group
of workers’ unions, coeducation)? papers (e.g., Human Rights Watch, Amnesty);
• To what extent is law enforcement unequal • Academic journal articles;
(e.g., dependent on a person’s connections
or wealth)? • Judicial records of recent or famous cases (if
publicly available);
• Where, when, how, by whom, and why are
decisions made about legislation, policy • Internal experiences working with parties;
and other governance issues? • Other international organizations’ experience
working with parties; and
• Parties’ own publications and broadcasts.

Historical Events, Trends and Patterns
in State-Citizen Interactions
• At what points and how or why has • Local staff knowledge;
political change at the national level
occurred in the past and up to now? • Staff internal knowledge and resources;
»» Mapping of political change over • International IDEA’s direct democracy database;
the last 50 years, including through
elections, whether peaceful, free or • Historical books;
regular; peaceful or violent revolutions;
coups d’état; military takeovers; or • Journal articles;
impeachment of leaders.
• ICG reports;
• In what ways does the state (i.e., state
institutions, not individual officials) • Local and international news reports;
currently interact with citizens, and vice
versa? • Freedom House country analyses;
»» Examples of state-citizen interactions
• World Bank World Development Indicators (for
include taxation (the proportion of GDP
tax statistics);
it comprises can indicate the extent to
which people trust their government, • Party publications and broadcasts;
as well as the government’s capacity
to collect taxes; what they are used • Parliamentary records and broadcasts; and
for is also significant), conscription,
prevalence of peaceful protests, other • Parties’ internal policy documents.
forms of nonviolent contestation, civil
war.
• What role, if any, have parties played in

these interactions?
»» May include organization of protests;
complaints to the government;
speeches against government policy
in parliament, public broadcasts, or
newspapers; development of opposing
policies.
• If a party is in government, to what extent

does it use state resources for patronage?

Social Legacies
• To what extent are some social groups • Internal staff knowledge;
marginalized on the grounds of ethnicity,
gender, religion, language, region, youth, • IPU Women in National Parliaments report;
sexual orientation, etc.?
• U.S. Department of State Human Rights Reports;
»» Groups could be marginalized either
formally, through state policy that favors • National legal documents, including the
some groups over others, or informally, constitution and citizenship laws;
through prevalent cultural norms.
• Numbers of women in positions of office (see IPU
• To what extent does the security statistics);
environment facilitate or restrict public
political activity? • UNDP Gender Inequality Index;
»» May include peaceful protests,
• Quotas for marginalized groups in parliament and
participation in elections, party
parties and whether these are enforced;
formation, civil disobedience.
»» In conflict contexts, this question could • Freedom House country analyses;
be altered to reflect security restrictions
on more basic activities such as school • Human Rights Watch and Amnesty papers;
or work attendance, investment, etc.
• Socioeconomic statistics published in local/
international think tank or research group reports;
• Local staff knowledge;
• Election turnout figures across the country

comparing secure and less secure areas;
• Local and international news reports about

protests and subsequent state responses;
• Civilian casualty rates as published by the UN; and
• The extent to which protests are organized

publicly or underground.
Personal Incentive Structures
• What motivates leaders and members to • Party leaders’ speeches and news articles;
be involved in politics in general?
• Party websites;
»» E.g., issues of ambition, standing within
the party, personal policy interests, • Think tank profiles on party leaders;
allegiance to key interest groups,
personal access to state resources and • Internal knowledge:
private contracts.
»» This may include whether or not young
• What motivates party members and members are encouraged to progress through
leaders to be involved in programs? the ranks, e.g., through the existence of young
people’s events, activities, or training programs;
»» E.g., questions of ambition, standing
within the party, personal policy »» Extent of the party’s involvement with other
interests, allegiance to key interest international democracy promotion groups; and
groups, personal benefits such as per »» Extent to which other party members
diem. have progressed in the party as a result
of participating in international programs,
particularly those run by the assistance provider.
These source suggestions can provide indications of

some leaders’ and members’ motivations; however,
the best way to get answers is to ask them directly
through semi-structured interviews described else-
where in this document.

Organizational Values & Priorities
• How are party policies/platforms • NDI internal knowledge, or that of other

developed, if at all? What are the main organizations working with parties;
influencing factors?
• Party publications and speeches;
»» If parties are not issue-based, the
question could be altered to focus on • Party website;
how different parties define themselves,
what they believe they stand for, or who • Party’s internal documentation, including its own
they claim to represent. history of activity;
• How do parties seek to assure their • Existence and functions of branch offices;
relevance to member interests, if at all?
• Status of party’s registration documentation
• To what extent are rank and file members – whether or not it has complied with all legal
informed of and able to participate in requirements for registration;
party decisions?
• Information available at the official party
• How does the party’s organizational registering body;
culture affect its activities?
»» Organizational culture may include • Party’s publicly-available, realistic aims and
internal work ethic, institutional objectives, with which party officials and members
structure, and ability to meet deadlines. are familiar;
• What kind of regular events dominate a • Existence of training schemes for those members
given party’s political calendar, and how interested in committing more time to the party;
do these affect decision making within the
party? • MOUs with other parties or groups; and
»» E.g., national elections; local elections; • Publicly-available minutes from meetings where
internal party conferences; internal party collaboration was discussed and agreed upon.
elections; or parliamentary events, such
as budget debates.
»» Mapping key annual events against
party activity would be useful here. Do
not assume that parties are at their most
active around these events; this will
depend in part on the party’s capacity
to plan ahead and be proactive (as
opposed to reactive).
• To what extent does the party have

relationships with other democratic parties
(international or domestic)?

Party Functioning
• How are different parties structured • Organizational internal knowledge;

internally?
• Previous baseline studies, if available;
• What is the day to day management of
parties? I.e., who is responsible for this, do • Conversations with party candidates for
they receive regular stipends or salaries, parliament/local councils.
and are political and administrative roles
kept separate? • Senior party officials, through formal or informal
conversations;
»» The recognition of the importance of
day to day organizational management • Internal party documentation like organograms
may be a strong indicator of the party’s or a party website, if regularly maintained and
functionality and sustainability. updated. (If no organogram is available, teams
could map out their own, based on information
• What is the extent of individual capacity, collected elsewhere);
technical know-how, and skills for
tasks such as information gathering, • Official party registration body;
management of branches, and the
development of platforms, legislation, • Party publications and policy documents;
strategy and policy?
• Frequency of party conferences/congresses, lists
• What is the role of branch offices and of invitees, and party website pages showing
what decisions do they make? advertisements for party focus group activities
and invitations for feedback;
• What institutional structures exist, if any,
to encourage party activists? • Minutes from party congress meetings;
• What incentives (formal or informal) exist • Timeliness of party responses to current events in
to encourage the participation of women, newspapers, broadcasts, and written statements;
youth, and other marginalized groups in
party structures and as candidates? • History of party activity over the last five years
showing it to be reactive or proactive;
• Who has control of party finances and
how are these administered? • Leaders’ broadcasts; and
• How are party executives, senior officials, • Parliamentary speeches.

and electoral candidates selected, and
how often? If the internal structures that control party finances
are centralized or undemocratic, this information will
• What role within the party do its elected be difficult to find and may require key informant
parliamentarians or local councilors play, interviews with mid-level party staff.
if any?
»» Do not make assumptions regarding
the centrality or importance within
the party of party members elected
to public office; where there is no
formal representation of parties in
parliament, this relationship may not
be straightforward, and allegiance may
evaporate once a candidate is elected
to office.
• How does the policy/platform-making

process incorporate public or constituent
opinion, if at all?

Strategic Connections
• How are various parties placed in terms • Party website for list of party affiliates, senior
of access to influential people and officials, or an advisory board, if it exists;
relationships with significant CSOs, trade
unions, the business community, the • Local staff knowledge;
military, etc.?
• TV channels/radio stations on which they are able
»» ‘Access to influential people’ could to gain airtime; and
include patron-client relationships, but
may also simply mean knowing people • Informal conversations with party officials.
in high places, receiving information
flows, or being well placed to respond
to issues in a timely manner.
Access to resources
• How do various parties finance their • Party website or internal documentation;

activities? E.g., through membership fees,
individual donors, government assistance, • IDEA party finance database;
ownership of businesses?
• Official party registration body;
• How sustainable are these sources of
funding? • Reports from democracy watchdog NGOs or think
tanks;
• What capacity exists within the party to
manage funds effectively? • Internal knowledge;
• Informal conversations with senior party officials

and staff members;
• Existence of internal accounts;
• Access to funds by staff members tasked primarily

with financial management;
• Regular rents paid for buildings; and
• Regular salaries paid to staff, if there are any

salaried staff.
History of political influence
• Where and how have parties made a • Internal staff knowledge;

difference in the political environment,
either locally or nationally? • International IDEA’s direct democracy database;
»» ‘Making a difference’ could mean • Party website;

anything from pushing through a shift
in government policy on healthcare • Historical accounts of party activities; and
provision to promoting GOTV activities
in the local community, to forcing an • News reports.
election through protests – anything
that is publicly visible or experienced.

Training
• How are next generation leaders treated • Informal conversations with young party members;
within parties?
• Party website;
• What systems, if any, exist to encourage
their development within parties? • The prominence given youth wing activities in
party publications, the news, and/or the website;
• What is the role of youth in parties?
• Existence of training programs; and
»» Conversely, this question could be
phrased in order to look for indicators • History of sending young members to trainings
that new or young enthusiasts are seen held by international organizations.
as a threat – e.g., a mass movement of
young members or mid-level officials
out of the party due to a lack of
opportunity to move up in the ranks.
Party Relationship With NDI
• To what extent have different parties been • Completed feedback forms from previous training
involved with NDI before? Does this affect programs in which the party participated;
the likelihood of their working with NDI
again? E.g., did they participate in NDI • Internal knowledge, particularly that of local staff;
training programs?
• Party website, to see if the party publicizes its
• Do they have experience working with connection to assistance providers;
other international democracy practitioner
agencies? • Informal conversations with the party secretariat
and other international agencies working in the
• What is their general attitude toward field, such as the German Stiftungen, IRI, IFES,
international donors and the U.S.? IDEA, WFD and NIMD;
»» This could be an important reflection of • Leaders’ speeches;

a party’s ideological stance, even if the
ideology is not clearly articulated by the • News articles and broadcasts;
party itself.
• Policy documents; and
• Informal conversations with donor representatives.

APPENDIX 2: INTERVIEW GUIDE
As outlined elsewhere in this publication, this tool suggests the use of semi-structured individual
interviews with a number of different respondents representing parties, civil society, government,
and other actors. The assumption is made that analysts will have access to these actors. However,
before any interviews can take place, it will be necessary to obtain buy-in from party leadership
to allow the participation of more junior members. Whether these junior members will be willing
to answer questions frankly is another issue – although if they are not, that in itself may demon-
strate an institutional culture of deference to leaders. In addition to this, certain questions – such
as those concerning party finances – can be sensitive and will need to be asked carefully, toward
the middle or end of an interview, so as not to put the respondent on edge from the start.
Preamble
• Introduce the research team and project.
• Explain the kind of information needed – for example, background information about the
political context of country X and how parties function within it so that useful programs to
assist parties might be developed, specific to the conditions in country X.
• Explain how data will be used (as background data, without quotations and not in pub-
lished reports), guarantee confidentiality and anonymity, with no record kept of names on
transcripts; check to ensure that consent for the interview is given.
• Thank the respondent for their valuable time.
Introductory questions
Please introduce yourself. (Probe: What is your role in the party/organization?)
Formal institutional context:
1. Tell us about the political system in country X. (Probes: How does the electoral sys-
tem work? How does parliament function? Is parliament divided into different interest
groups? What laws exist on political activity and parties? How was the constitution draft-
ed? How does the judicial system work? What can you tell us about civil society groups in
country X? How about the media?)
2. How did the current political system become established? (Probes: Who were the main
people involved in creating the current system? When did the current system become
established?)
3. How does the current political system work for parties? (Probe: As a party representa-
tive/someone who works closely with parties, is there anything you would change about
the current political system? Please give details.)

Informal institutional context:
1. How would you describe the structure of society in country X? (Probes: What divisions,
if any, exist between people, and in what ways or through what activities do people of dif-
ferent groups come together, if at all?)
2. Tell us about people’s access to justice in country X. How would you describe the judi-
cial system?
3. If another party proposed to make an alliance with your own party, who would make a
decision about this, and how would that decision be made? (Probe: What do you think
would influence that decision?)
Historical events, trends and patterns in state-citizen interactions:
1. Tell us about political change in the past in country X. (Probes: When and how has the
government changed in the last fifty years?)
2. In what ways do ordinary people come into contact with government institutions in
country X? (Probes: Tell us about taxation here – what kinds of taxes are collected, and from
whom? Is military service required of young people? Can you give an example of a recent
protest that has taken place? What was it about and how did the government react?)
3. How, if at all, are parties involved in these interactions with the government? (Probes:
Can you give an example of when your own party has wanted or tried to confront the
government? How did the party do this? What was its main objective?)
Social legacies:
1. Tell us about opportunities for young people/women/other marginalized groups in

country X. (Probes: How easy is it to get a job or go to university? What are the basic
requirements? Is this the same or different in different parts of the country? What about
among different groups of people? Note that these probes could be modified and/or re-
peated for women and other marginalized groups.)
2. Tell us about the security situation here and how, if at all, it affects your party’s activi-
ties. (Probes: Is this the same across the country?)
Personal incentive structures:
1. Tell us about why you wanted to become involved in politics in the first place. (Probes:
What or who first motivated you?)
2. If an international organization was running a training program for party members,

do you think members of your party might be interested in participating? For what
reasons?

Institutional incentive structures:
1. Tell us about the activities your party is involved in this year. (Probes: Which do you
think are the most important and why? What happens at the party offices during these
events? Who is in charge?)
2. Can you describe the administrative side of the party’s activities? (Probes: Who is re-
sponsible for this?)
3. If a member was interested in becoming more involved with the party, how would they
do this?
4. To what extent does the party have relationships with other parties? (Probes: How are
decisions made about which parties to form alliances with? Are there any criteria for this?
What about connections with international parties?)
Internal functioning/accountability:
1. Who is responsible for overseeing party finances and how are these administered?
2. How are decisions made within the party? (Probes: Who participates in decision mak-
ing? Can you give an example of a recent party decision that was made? What happened
after the decision was made?)
3. If/when you have a party conference, who is invited to attend? (Probe: How often do
these take place, and where?)
4. If a party member in the provinces wanted to make a suggestion to the party leader-
ship, how would he or she do this?
5. How are party officials selected? How are electoral candidates selected? (Probe: What
role within the party do its elected parliamentarians/local councilors play, if any?)
Policy/platform development:
How are party policies/platforms developed? (Probe: Can you give an example of a re-
cent policy made by the party and the process through which it was made?)
Party relationship with assistance providers:
1. Has the party been involved with external assistance providers before? (Probe: Has
the party participated in training programs offered by external partners? If yes, can you
describe the experience? Has the party worked with other international agencies? What
were your impressions of them?)
2. Do you have any contact with international donor agencies such as USAID? (Probe:
What has been your experience in this regard?)

Formal organization:
1. How is the party structured internally? (Probe: What different branches/departments

exist? Can you describe the hierarchy of authority in the party?)
2. How does the day to day management of the party function – who is responsible for
this; do they receive a stipend or salary?
3. How would you describe the level of skills that individuals in the party have? (Probe:
For example, in the areas of information gathering or the development of platforms, leg-
islation, strategy or policy?)
Strategic connections:
How is the party placed in terms of its access to influential people?
Access to resources:
How does the party finance its activities? (Probe: For example, through membership
fees, individual donors, or government assistance? How sustainable are these sources of
funding? How are they managed?)
History of political influence:
In your opinion, where and how has the party made a difference in the political envi-
ronment, either locally or nationally?
Training:
If a young member of the party was interested in receiving further training in political
skills, how would they access this kind of training? Who would they speak to? (Note
that this question could be adapted for different types of marginalized groups.)

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bjuremalm, Helena. Power Analysis: Experiences and Challenges. Stockholm: Swedish

International Development Agency, 2006.
Bryman, Alan. Social Research Methods. 4th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012.
Markowski, Radoslaw. “Political Accountability and Institutional Design in New

Democracies.” International Journal of Sociology. 36, no. 2 (2006): 45-75.
Morgenstern, Scott and Andrew Green. Political Party Assessment Tool. Pittsburgh: University
of Pittsburgh, 2011.
Morgenstern, Scott, Andrew Green and Jeremy Horowitz. Democracy, Parties and Party
Systems: A Conceptual Framework for USAID Assistance Programs. Pittsburgh: University of
Pittsburgh, 2011.
Power, Greg and Oliver Coleman. The Challenges of Political Programming: International
Assistance to Parties and Parliaments. Stockholm: International IDEA, 2011.
Tilly, Charles. Democracy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). “Institutional and Context Analysis

Guidance Note.” Oslo: UNDP, 2012.
Warrener, Debbie. The Drivers of Change Approach. London: Overseas Development Institute,
2004.
Wellhofer, E. Spencer and Timothy M. Hennessey. “Political Party Development:

Institutionalization, Leadership Recruitment and Behavior.” American Journal of Political
Science. 18, no. 1 (1974): 135-165.
Wild, Leni, Marta Foresti and Pilar Domingo. International Assistance to Political Party and
Party System Development. London: Overseas Development Institute, 2011.

National Democratic Institute
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Washington DC 20001
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Fax: 888-875-2887
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CONTEXT

National Democratic Institute

455 Massachusetts Ave, NW

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool i

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool ii

Kenneth Wollack Ivan Doherty

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool iii

The Will, Space, Capacity Framework  2

What Information is Needed and Why?  3

Appendix 1: Framework of Research Questions  19

Appendix 2: Interview Guide  27

Figure 2: Components of Will, Space and Capacity  4

Figure 3: Context Analysis  12

Table 2: Sampling Guide for Expanded Interviews  7

Table 3: Problem Analysis  16

Textbox 2: Basic Tips for Qualitative Interviews  8

Textbox 3: Party Systems and Cross-cutting Themes  12

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool iv

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 1

Textbox 1: How This Tool Builds on Existing Approaches

THE WILL, SPACE, CAPACITY FRAMEWORK

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 2

Figure 1: The Will, Space, Capacity Framework

WHAT INFORMATION IS NEEDED AND WHY?

An important first step in designing a program strategy is to develop an understanding of the

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 3

Figure 2: Components of Will, Space and Capacity

• The formal &

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 4

Suggested Research Methods

• Country constitutions and electoral laws;

• Freedom House Freedom in the World reports;

• Human Rights Watch reports;

• Transparency International reports, including the Corruption Perceptions Index;

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 5

• International Crisis Group reports;

• The World Bank’s World Development Indicators;

• The Human Development Index;

• The Gender Inequality Index;

• International Parliamentary Union (IPU) reports;

• Local and international media sources; and

Key Informant Interviews

Table 1: Sampling Guide for Key Informant Interviews

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 6

Table 2: Sampling Guide for Expanded Interviews

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 7

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 8

1. Adapt your approach to the cultural context

2. Use open-ended rather than closed questions

3. Avoid leading questions

4. If a respondent struggles to answer an open-ended question, follow up with ‘probes’

Organizing the Data Collection Process

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 9

Step 1: Gathering Basic Contextual Information

Step 2: Collecting Information on Party Behavior and Other Contextual Factors

Informal institutional context: Prevalence of patron-client networks, uniformity of law en-

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 10

Formal organization: Internal structures, management, institutional frameworks, levels of ca-

National Democratic Institute • Context Analysis Tool 11

The Will, Space, Capacity Framework 2

What Information is Needed and Why? 3

Appendix 1: Framework of Research Questions 19

Appendix 2: Interview Guide 27

Figure 2: Components of Will, Space and Capacity 4

Figure 3: Context Analysis 12

Table 2: Sampling Guide for Expanded Interviews 7

Table 3: Problem Analysis 16

Textbox 2: Basic Tips for Qualitative Interviews 8

Textbox 3: Party Systems and Cross-cutting Themes 12

1. Political Context 2. Party Functioning 3. Problem Analysis