Special Report Series
An Eye on Arab
Democratization

A report series examining representation,
accountability, participation, and civic
space across the MENA region

The Arab region, or MENA (Middle East and North Africa), has had a chequered history with democratization.
Against the current backdrop of autocratization and democratic de-consolidation,
the Toda Peace Institute presents this report series written by MENA region experts
examining patterns of democratic erosion across nine countries,
alongside a case study on the gender dimensions of democratization.

Viewpoints on MENA
Special Report
series

The Arab Spring Rollback and Varieties of Arab ‘Autocratization’

The Arab region, or MENA (Middle East and North Africa), has had a chequered history with democratization….

AUTHOR

Larbi Sadiki

Larbi Sadiki is Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Scholar, non-resident Senior Fellow at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs (Doha), and Toda Peace Institute Scholar (Japan).

Yemen: An Aborted Democratic Dream

This report analyses the challenges in Yemen which has for fourteen years suffered from the problem of aborted democratization. …

AUTHOR

Nabil Al-Bukairi

Nabil Al-Bukairi is a Yemeni writer and researcher interested in issues of Islamic and Western political thought, democratic transition, and human rights.

A New Syria in a ‘New Middle East’: Challenges and Opportunities for Democratization

This report seeks to chart the political transition and the prospects for pluralist, if not democratic, rule in a situation that …

AUTHOR

Larbi Sadiki

Larbi Sadiki is Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Scholar, non-resident Senior Fellow at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs (Doha), and Toda Peace Institute Scholar (Japan).

AUTHOR

Layla Saleh

Layla Saleh is Visiting Research Fellow at the Graduate School of Humanities and Studies of Public Affairs at Chiba University (Japan) and Director of Research at Demos Tunisia–Democratic Sustainability Forum.

Lebanon’s Democratization: The Impasse of Political Parties Reform

This report focuses on the impasse of legal and political reform in Lebanon, with special reference to political parties….

AUTHOR

Dania Koleilat Khatib

Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib is the co-founder and President of the Research Center for Cooperation and Peace Building (RCCP), a Lebanese NGO focused on Track II diplomacy.

AUTHOR

Amine Bashir

Amine Bashir is a Lebanese politician and lawyer. He is a political analyst and researcher.

Democratic Backsliding in Mauritania: Challenges and Trends

This report examines recent political developments in Mauritania which show signs of democratic backsliding, with increasing restrictions …

AUTHOR

Ahmedou Menna

Ahmedou Ould Ahmed Menna is a Development Expert. He has more than 30 years of experience in planning, development, and translation in Arabic, French, and English.

On the Erosion of Tunisia’s Once-Promising Democratisation Experiment

This report aims to examine the process of Tunisia’s autocratisation, which continues to reverse the gains from the 2011 Arab Spring….

AUTHOR

Moncef Khaddar

Dr. M. Moncef Khaddar held the position of associate professor in the Department of International Relations at Eastern Mediterranean University and Cyprus International University.

Iraq’s Precarious Political System: Consociationalism and Permanent Crisis

Pacific Island countries agency and coherence at COP28 can be understood as a New Pacific Diplomacy approach…

AUTHOR

Khalil Fadl Osman

Khalil Fadl Osman is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies and Fellow at Demos Tunisia.

Egypt’s Divided Political Society and ‘Loyal Opposition’

This report analyses Egypt’s opposition, which has failed to rise up to the challenge of being a democratic force in the country’s politics….

AUTHOR

Mohammed Moussa

Mohammed Moussa is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University.

An Eye on Moroccan Democratization: Towards an Adaptation?

This report evaluates the implications of Morocco’s political trajectory, arguing that it represents a form of adaptive governance rather than substantive democratization…

AUTHOR

Aisha Kadaoui

Dr. Aisha Kadaoui is a Moroccan political scientist and constitutional law scholar whose work focuses on constitutional reform, democratic transitions, and governance in Morocco and the wider Maghreb.

Policy Challenges to Democratization in the Occupied Palestinian Territory

This paper contends that the future of Palestinian governance requires more than technocratic fixes….

AUTHOR

Hanan Kaoud

Hanan Kaoud is a Palestinian scholar and policy analyst specializing in democratization, gender, and governance in colonial contexts.

Arab Women’s Inclusiveness: Navigating Terrains of De-Democratization and Conflict

This paper surveys the landscape of women’s inclusion in Arab politics since 2011 and to analyze the status of gender relations in Arab authoritarian domestic politics….

AUTHOR

Layla Saleh

Layla Saleh is Visiting Research Fellow at the Graduate School of Humanities and Studies of Public Affairs at Chiba University (Japan) and Director of Research at Demos Tunisia–Democratic Sustainability Forum.

The Toda Peace Institute is an independent, nonpartisan institute committed to advancing a more just and peaceful world through policy-oriented peace research and practice.