In 2025, Demo Finland’s journey in supporting democracy has lasted for 20 years. As an organisation of all the Finnish parliament parties, Demo Finland is globally unique. The theme of the anniversary year, “democracy builds on collaboration”, reflects both Demo Finland’s long-standing focus on supporting multi-party dialogue and the growing need to build bridges in times when the state of democracy keeps declining globally and societal polarisation continues to increase.
Supporting democracy by parties for parties
The founding of Demo Finland was based on a government resolution made in 2004. According to the resolution, “improving the capacity of parliaments and the party system in developing countries creates the basis for the development and consolidation of democracy”. Nowadays, supporting democracy is seen from a wider perspective: democracy support is considered a part of foreign and security policy, and for example, in 2024 the Finnish Government in its Report on Finnish Foreign and Security Policy stated democracy as one of its driving values. Keeping with this principle, Demo Finland actively takes part in conversations on foreign policy.
A working group tasked with mapping the possibilities for bringing the expertise and experience of Finnish political parties into development co-operation was active in 2001–2002. The working group included representatives of the Advisory Council on Development Policy, the predecessor of the current Development Policy Committee, as well as representatives of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and political parties. In its final report, the working group concluded that “Finnish political parties can bring a new operational dimension to development co-operation that has been missing so far.” The working group stressed that the starting point for co-operation should be the interest shown by the political parties in the partner country, which has remained an important principle in Demo Finland’s work.
In 2004–2005, international multi-party co-operation in democracy was piloted with Tanzanian political parties. A delegation from Tanzania visited Finland in the run-up to the municipal elections in October 2004, and the following year Finnish party representatives visited Tanzania to familiarise themselves with the preparations for the Tanzanian general elections. In September 2005, Finnish parliamentary parties jointly founded Demo Finland, and the association was registered in January 2006.
The first co-operation programme started in Tanzania, building on the experience of the pilot phase, and focused on supporting women’s political participation and co-operation. During the first year of operation, Demo Finland also started to prepare a programme on youth participation in Nepal, a country recovering from civil war. In the first years, working groups of Finnish political party representatives played a major role in programme design and monitoring. Already in 2006, Demo Finland, in co-operation with other actors, organised a training programme for political youth organisations – a concept which later evolved into Demo Finland’s current annual Democracy Academy.
Over the past twenty years, Demo Finland’s programme activities have expanded to new countries and new thematic areas. However, exchanging experience and peer learning between political party actors from Finland and partner countries, supporting multi-party dialogue and strengthening the political participation of women and young people remain at the core of Demo Finland’s work. Today, international exchanges of experience are taking place not only through study trips and visits but also more and more online. Nonetheless, the main focus remains on programmes in partner countries, with activities focused on trainings tailored to local needs, facilitation of multi-party networks and other activities with local parties aimed at strengthening the multi-party system.
Although Finnish political party actors have good practices to share, democracy cannot be exported. Democracy must also be developed everywhere, as it is never completed. Hence, Demo Finland also supports democracy in Finland, which strengthens its credibility as an equal partner in international co-operation.
Demo Finland is owned by the Finnish parliamentary parties. All parties that have received a mandate from the electorate in parliamentary elections have been members throughout the history of the organisation, and all parliamentary parties are represented on Demo Finland’s board. Demo Finland is an organisation by parties for parties.
Democracy builds on collaboration
Throughout Demo Finland’s 20-year existence, strengthening co-operation between political parties has been one of the cornerstones of its activities. As societal and political polarisation has increased globally, the need for multi-party dialogue has only grown stronger.
“Co-operation between young people from different ideological backgrounds used to be an unthinkable idea. Thanks to the space created by Demo Finland, the situation is now different.”
Leader of a Nepalese political youth organisation in 2008
Constructive dialogue between the parties promotes mutual respect and creates space for policies that take different views into account. Inter-party dialogue prevents conflict by addressing issues that divide society through constructive conversation. In a multi-party democracy, the ability of parties to work together is necessary to find solutions that move society forward. Constructive and respectful political dialogue also enhances citizens’ trust in representative democracy.
Demo Finland strengthens inter-party dialogue and open political interaction both in Finland and in its international programmes. Demo Finland supports its partners in facilitating dialogue and creates and strengthens safe spaces for inter-party dialogue.
“Before attending the Tunisian School of Politics, I was inflexible and could not understand people on the other side of the political spectrum. But during the School of Politics, my colleagues and I learned to accept different ideologies and engage in dialogue. In a way, the School of Politics taught us to be rational and to compromise.”
Tunisian Politics School alumni in 2018
Finland has a long tradition of multi-party co-operation and coalition governments – phenomena which attract a lot of interest outside Finland. It is important to nurture this tradition and experience in Finland, as examples from around the world show that democracy and the ability to co-operate that it entails should not be taken for granted.
“We went campaigning together with my ‘sister’ from another party. When people asked us why we were campaigning together, we told them that we were both women and we supported each other because we had a common cause.”
Zambian female politician in 2018
Demo Finland’s work to support co-operation and dialogue between political parties has produced tangible results. In several of Demo Finland’s international programmes, joint platforms or initiatives between parties have been the first examples of multi-party co-operation in the country.
- A joint policy programme of Nepali youth was prepared at the Joint Youth and Students’ Platform facilitated by Demo Finland in 2009. It was the country’s first cross-party youth policy.
- In 2010, a cross-party platform for women politicians was launched in Tanzania. Before the Demo Finland-supported project, women from different parties did not co-operate with each other.
- In the run-up to the 2016 general elections, Zambian women politicians made a historical joint statement at the national level condemning electoral violence across party lines.
- In Myanmar, a multi-party platform of 12 parties in Shan State made a joint bill in 2019, which was later passed by the state parliament. The country has no history of multi-party co-operation.
- In the current difficult political context, the Tunisian School of Politics, founded in 2012, offers the only space where young politicians can debate across party lines and learn about democracy on a multi-party basis.
- In 2023, the youth and student organisations of all the parliamentary parties in Finland issued a joint declaration calling for party politics on a multi-party basis to become a stronger part of democracy education in schools and educational institutions.
“I realised that despite our ideological starting points, we are quite similar.”
Finnish youth politician who participated in the Democracy Academy 2025