The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide through citizen participation, openness and accountability in government.

In 1998, Lebanon revised its drug law, decriminalizing drug addiction and treating it as a public health issue, a first step toward viewing addiction as a social and health problem. But in the years since, judges and civil society representatives have found shortcomings in the statute, which they say include a lack of access to healthcare and a tendency to ignore drug users’ civil rights. Tired of waiting for government action, civil society organizations across Lebanon have begun advocacy campaigns of their own.

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Working as an intern in the Afghan parliament in 2007, Atifa Safi helped members and parliamentary committees write reports, take minutes, conduct research and analyze data.  She had the opportunity to contribute to the legislative process while seeing the workings of government close up, and the lawmakers benefited from the help that she and other interns provided. When she graduated from the program when it ended in 2008, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she could do more for young people.

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