Carter Center Featured Partner: UK Department for International Development (DFID)

The Carter Center Health and Peace Programs appreciate the continued support of our foundation, government, and corporate donors and are pleased to highlight their contributions in these regular Web features.

Featured February 2009

DFID is an ongoing partner of The Carter Center, contributing more than $7.5 million towards a variety of peace initiatives since 1997. DFID's support has enabled the Center to observe elections in Africa and Asia, and to address conflicts around the world.

Conflict
A new fund within DFID, created in 2005, tackles humanitarian, conflict, security, and justice issues that underpin poverty in some of the most vulnerable communities around the world. The Conflict and Humanitarian Fund provides flexible support for the Carter Center's conflict resolution activities in the Middle East and Africa. One of the unique characteristics of the Conflict and Humanitarian Fund is its "lessons learned" aspect, in which grant recipients provide feedback about which conflict and disaster reduction strategies are the most successful in the field. In this way, DFID is encouraging the growth of a larger "community of practice" and building stronger partnerships around the world to reduce the impact of conflict.

Elections
The United Kingdom has also proved central to Carter Center election monitoring, being one of the most generous donors to our elections work for several years. These election initiatives have included the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the high voter turnout and the calm, orderly voting throughout most of the country was a major achievement for the democratic process; Ghana, where the successful transfer of presidential power showed that democracy's growing maturity; and Nepal, where – after more than 10 years of civil strife – constituent assembly elections were held to chart the country's future.

Ongoing Activities
DFID's support will also be instrumental in future initiatives, such as elections in Sudan and Lebanon. DFID's generous financial support of the Carter Center's work reflects its longstanding dedication to international peace, human rights, and democracy. Its partnership with The Carter Center is just one example of how the United Kingdom is actively working to establish peace and justice around the world.