DRG Program Resources
- User's Guide to Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance Programming - 2024 [pdf]
- Handbook of Democracy and Governance Program Indicators (1998) [pdf]
- Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance Strategic Assessment Framework
- Gender Integration in Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance (DRG) [pdf, 3mb]
- COVID-19: Issues and Potential USAID Responses
Policy Documents
- USAID Strategy on Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance (2013) [pdf]
- USAID Political Party Assistance Policy [pdf]
Capacity Development Guidance
- Capacity Development Measurement Guidance [pdf, 175kb]
- Local Capacity Development: Recommended Approaches Additional Help [pdf, 235kb]
COVID and DRG
- COVID-19: Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance Issues and Potential USAID Responses
- DRG and COVID-19 Trends Paper Series: Democractic Backsliding
DRG Funded Research
- Maintaining Civic Space in Backsliding Regimes pdf [820kb]
- Grassroots Reform in the Global South pdf [789kb]
- Making Human Rights Campaigns Effective While Limiting Unintended Consequences pdf [1mb]
- Can Indigenous Associations Foster Trust, Tolerance, and Public Goods? Exploring the Role of Grins in Post-Conflict Mali [pdf, 2mb]
- Combatting Corruption Among Civil Servants: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on What Works [pdf, 1mb]
- Does Women’s Political Presence Matter? Examining Descriptive, Substantive, and Symbolic Representation via a Natural Experiment [pdf, 1mb]
- Increasing the Civic and Political Participation of Women: Understanding the Risk of Strong Resistance [pdf, 1mb]
- Struggles from Below: Literature Review on Human Rights Struggles by Domestic Actors [pdf, 1mb]
- China and the African State Evidence from Surveys, Survey Experiments, and Behavioral Games in Liberia [pdf, 471kb]
- Reducing Vulnerability to Human Trafficking [pdf 530kb]
- Civil Resistance and Corporate Behavior [pdf 736kb]
- Theories of Democratic Change Phase 1 - Democratic Backsliding [pdf 1mb]
- Online and Offline Activism in Egypt and Bahrain [pdf]
- Value for Money in Purchasing Votes? [pdf]
- Legitimacy Deficits in Colombia’s Peace Talks [pdf]
- Golos Impact Evaluation [pdf, 3mb]
- Constituency Dialogues and Citizen Engagement in Cambodia [pdf, 793kb]
- Networks and Information: An Impact Evaluation of Efforts to Increase Political Participation in Mozambique [pdf, 2mb]
- Summary Report Cambodia Impact Evaluation [pdf, 1mb]
- Development Effectiveness Evaluation Study [pdf, 485kb]
- Impact Evaluation of USAID’s Community-Based Crime and Violence Prevention Approach in Central America: Regional Report for El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Panama [pdf, 676kb]
- Ghana Strengthening Accountability Mechanisms (GSAM) [pdf, 330kb]
- Increasing Political Participation in Mozambique [pdf, 593kb]
- Increasing Services for Survivors of Sexual Assault in South Africa [pdf, 506kb]
- Baseline Report: La lucha contra la influencia de los intereses ilegales en los procesos políticos del Perú [doc, 231kb]
- Impact Evaluation of the “Increasing Services for Survivors of Sexual Assault in South Africa” Program [doc, 2mb]
- Impact Evaluation of Supporting Traditional Leaders and Local Structures to Mitigate Community-Level Conflict in Zimbabwe [doc, 556kb]
- Numerous Africa Bureau country page updates & review to include: South Africa, Southern Africa Regional, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Senegal, Burundi, Liberia, Kenya [doc, 816kb]
- Starting line report conducted in districts and among the population for the Pro participation program [pdf, 3mb]
Field Guides & Handbooks
Applied Political Economy Analysis
Civil Society and Media
- Civil Society Assessment Toolkit
- Youth Inclusion in DRG Toolkit
- USAID Youth in Development Policy
- Integrating Youth in USAID Programming Resources
- Working in Closing Spaces Best Practices Guide
- Essential Resources for Supporting Civil Society in Politically Restrictive Environments
- ADS 201- Key Considerations for Programming in Politically Sensitive Environments
- Civil Society Organizations Sustainability Index (CSOSI)
- Youth Programming Assessment Tool (YPAT)
- Local Philanthropy and Self Reliance Guide
- Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Laws and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Standards and Procedures: A TOOLKIT FOR NOT-FOR-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS
- A Novel Civic Idea - Building the Capacity of Youth to Critique and Create Media in Digital Culture
- Civic I.D.E.A. Youth Media Literacy Toolkit
- Capacity Development Interventions: A Guide for Program Designers
- CivicSpace.Tech
- Countering Violent Extremism Online Guide for Local CSOs
- Disinformation Primer
- Nonviolent Collective Action in Democratic Development Primer
Elections and Political Processes
- Raising Their Voices: How effective are pro-youth laws and policies?
- Electoral Assessment Framework: A Tool to Assess Needs, Define Objectives, and Identify Program Options (2021) [pdf]
- Companion Toolkit for Electoral Assessment Framework (2021) [pdf]
- Transition Elections and Political Processes in Reconstruction and Stabilization Operations: Lesson Learned (2007) [pdf]
- Electoral Security Framework: Technical Guidance Handbook for Democracy and Governance Officers (2010) [pdf]
- Promoting Legal Frameworks for Democratic Elections: An NDI Guide for Developing Election Laws (2008) [pdf]
- Assessing and Verifying Election Results: A Decision-Maker’s Guide to Parallel Vote Tabulation and Other Tools [pdf]
- Promoting More Policy-Focused Parties through Civic Organizing (2020)
- Leadership in Crisis: Ensuring Independence, Ethics and Resilience in the Electoral Process (2020)
- Violence Against Women in Elections Online: A Social Media Monitoring Tool (2019)
- Abuse of State Resources Research and Assessment Framework (2018)
- Elections on Trial: The Effective Management of Election Disputes and Violations (2018)
- Violence Against Women in Elections: A Framework for Assessment, Monitoring, and Response (2016)
- Votes without Violence: Monitoring and Mitigating Electoral Violence Against Women (2016)
- Open Election Data Guide (2015)
- Primer: Cybersecurity and Elections (July 2022)
- Understanding Cybersecurity Throughout the Electoral Process: A Reference Document
- Briefing Paper on Cybersecurity of Voter Registration
- Briefing Paper on Cybersecurity of Election Results Management Systems
- Electoral Cybersecurity: A Donor Program Development Guide
Rule of Law
- Rule of Law Terrain Analysis: A Literature Review
- Rule of Law Practitioner's Guide (2020)
- Designing and Implementing Court Automation Projects Guide (2019)
- Non-State Justice System Programming: A Practitioners’ Guide (2019)
- Key Document: Guide to Rule of Law Country Analysis: The Rule of Law Strategic Framework (2010) [pdf]
- Crime and Prevention Field Guide Final Report 2016
- Integrating Rule of Law and Global Development: Food Security, Climate Change, and Public Health 2013 [pdf]
- Field Guide for USAID DG Officers: Assistance to Civilian Law Enforcement in Developing Countries (2011) [pdf]
- HIV/AIDS Legal Assessment Tool (2011) [pdf]
- Guide to Court Reform and the Role of Court Personnel: A Guide for USAID Democracy and Governance Workers (2010) [pdf]
- Reducing Corruption in the Judiciary (2009) [pdf]
- Using Administrative Law Tools and Concepts to Strengthen USAID Programming (2008) [pdf]
- Anticorruption and Police Integrity (2007) [pdf]
- USAID Legal Empowerment of the Poor: From Concepts to Assessment 2007 [pdf]
- Rebuilding the Rule of Law in Post-Conflict Environments 2005 [pdf]
- Alternative Dispute Resolution Guide (1998) [pdf]
- Land and Business Formalization for Legal Empowerment of the Poor: Strategic Overview Paper January, 2007
- Assistance for Civilian Policing: USAID Policy Guidance December, 2005
- Achievements in Building and Maintaining the Rule of Law: MSI's Studies in LAC, E&E, AFR, and ANE November, 2002
- Guidance for Promoting Judicial Independence and Impartiality November, 2002
- Case Tracking and Management Guide September, 2001
- Strategic Approaches for Donor-Supported Rule of Law Programs February, 1994
- “From Rule of Men to Rule of Law in Europe and Eurasia” A Synthesis of Eight Country Impact Assessments February, 2004
Anti-Corruption
- Key Document: Anticorruption Assessment Handbook (2009) [pdf]
- Key Document: Practitioner's Guide to Anticorruption (2015) [pdf]
- USAID Anti-corruption Program Efficacy in sub-Saharan Africa 2018
- Analysis of USAID Anticorruption Programming Worldwide 2014 [pdf]
- Tools for Assessing Corruption and Integrity 2005
- An Anti-corruption reader (2005) [pdf]
- Anti-Corruption and Transparency Coalitions: Lessons from Peru, Paraguay, El Salvador, and Bolivia 2005 [pdf]
- Anti-corruption Investigation and Trial Guide 2005 [pdf]
Governance
- Democratic Decentralization Programming Handbook
- Decentralized Governance and Accountability: Academic Research and The Future of Donor Programming
- USAID Guidance for Democracy and Governance Programming in Post-Conflict Countries
- Interagency Security Sector Reform Guide (2009) [pdf]
- Handbook on Legislative Strengthening (2000) [pdf]
- Strengthening and Working with Legislatures to Achieve Development Results: A Practitioner's Guide [pdf]
- Good Governance Programmatic Approaches Inventory
- Good Governance Evidence Gap Map
- Governance Programmatic Metrics
- Democratic Decentralization Programming Handbook
- USAID’s Collecting Taxes Database
- Debt Transparency Monitor
- Public Debt: A Primer for Development Practitioners
- Tax Adminstration Reform: A Primer
- Tax Policy Reform Primer
- Improving Subnational Domestic Resource Mobilization
- PEA-4-PFM Reform
- USAID Public Financial Management PFM Primer
- Handbook on Legislative Strengthening
- Detailed Guidelines for Effective Tax Administration in Latin America and the Caribbean
- Directrices Detalladas para la Mejora de la Administración Tributaria en América Latina y el Caribe
- Guatemala Urban Municipal Governance Political Economy Assessment
- Building Gender-Equal Cities in Tunisia: The Femmedina Project
- 4 New Learning Briefs Available
- 2023 USAID Public Financial Management PFM Guide
Human Rights
- Counter-Trafficking in Persons (C-TIP) Field Guide
- Field Guide: Helping Prevent Mass Atrocities [pdf]
- USAID’s Counter-Trafficking in Persons
- USAID and C-TIP Integration
- Standard Operating Procedures: Contractor/Recipient Compliance
- Applying Rights-Based Approaches
Transitional Justice
Security Sector
- USAID Police Guidance and Myth Buster (2021)
- Rule of Law and Security Sector Governance Indicators Guide (2021)
- Gender and Security Sector Reform Toolkit (2021)
- Security Sector Governance (2020)
- Effectiveness of Police Accountability Mechanisms (2020)
- Inventory of USAID Security Sector Governance and Institution Building Programs (2019)
- Security Sector Institution Building Toolkit (2017)
- Interagency Security Sector Assessment Framework Guidance for the U.S. Government (2010)
- Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Programming Lessons Learned (2010)
- Interagency Maritime Security Sector Reform (2010)
DRG Assessments & Analysis
Country Assessments
- DRG Assessment of the Democratic Republic of Congo (2012) [pdf]
- DRG Assessment of Indonesia (2013) [pdf]
- DRG Assessment of Senegal (2013) [pdf]
Regional Assessments
Democracy Assistance
- Deepening our Understanding of the Effects of US Foreign Assistance on Democracy Building (2008) [pdf]
- Improving Democracy Assistance: Building Knowledge though Evaluations and Research (2008) [pdf]
Civil Society & Media
- A Mobile Voice: The Role of Mobile Phones in Citizen Media (2008) [pdf]
- Civil Society Organization (CSO) Sustainability Index for Africa (2019) [pdf]
- Civil Society Organization (CSO) Sustainability Index for Asia (2019) [pdf]
- Civil Society Organization (CSO) Sustainability Index for Europe and Eurasia (2019) [pdf]
- Civil Society Organization (CSO) Sustainability Index for the Middle East and North Africa (2019) [pdf]
- Civil Society Organization (CSO) Sustainability Index for Latin America and the Caribbean (Mexico) (2019) [pdf]
- New Media and International Media Development: A Resource Guide for Europe and Eurasia (2008) [pdf]
- Disinformation Primer (2021) [pdf]
Elections & Political Processes
Women in Power Project
- Women in Power Summary Report
- Women in Power Briefer
- Women’s Leadership as a Route To Greater Empowerment: Desktop Study [pdf]
- Women’s Leadership as a Route to Greater Empowerment: Report on the Diamond Leadership Model [pdf]
- Women’s Leadership as a Route to Greater Empowerment: Cambodia Case Study [pdf]
- Women’s Leadership as a Route to Greater Empowerment: Georgia Case Study [pdf]
- Women’s Leadership as a Route to Greater Empowerment: Jordan Case Study [pdf]
- Women’s Leadership as a Route to Greater Empowerment: Kenya Case Study [pdf]
- Women’s Leadership as a Route to Great Empowerment: Mexico Case Study [pdf]
DRG Videos
- Security Sector Assistance E-module Training (1-hour)
- Women in Power Project
- Non-State Justice System Programming (2021)
- Rule of Law: Designing and Implementing Court Automation Project (2021)
Cross-Sectoral Programming
For additional DRG resources please check the DRGLinks website