PASOS Policy Brief: New Kids on the Block. Can the Visegrad Four Emerge as Effective Players in International Democracy Assistance?

• The democracy assistance programmes of the Visegrad countries remain modest in financial terms, but the democracy know-how and commitment of their NGOs involved in democracy assistance is high-level
• Visegrad democracy assistance budgets have more than doubled in recent years, the growth is continuing, and some progress has been made in grant-making procedures
• V4 countries need to better strategise their assistance programmes and make the whole process more transparent. They should also clearly distinguish democracy assistance programmes from other official development aid (ODA) activities.
• Visegrad governments should continue their peer pressure on target-country politicians for further democratisation, and in the western Balkans and Ukraine remain advocates of the respective countries' European aspirations
• Visegrad countries are well placed, through their EU accession experience, to assist neighbouring countries in the European integration process
• Sustainable partnerships should be built with local actors in target countries, and Visegrad embassies in these countries should increase their direct support to local NGOs