Resources
New and Noteworthy
IDEA to launch a new home for constitutional drafters
General Resources
- ConstitutionNet.org
Constitutionnet.org is a project of the International Institute for Democracy Assistance (IDEA). The site supports constitutional designers by, among other things, collecting and sharing important constitutional documents from different processes, and providing a platform for experience-sharing among practitioners. - Bibliography of Comparative Constitutional Drafting Resources
A comprehensive bibliograpy of scholarly works related to constitutional drafting. - Center for Democracy and Development
The CDD website highlights the work of the Centre through its publications, conferences, resources and projects, including Promoting Constitutionalism in Africa. Related papers are Constitution Making in Nigeria: Lessons for Making a People's Constitution and Constitutional Reform in Nigeria: Perspectives from Civil Society, produced by The Citizen's Forum for Constitutional Reform (CFCR), a "coalition of civil society organizations committed to a process-led and participatory approach to constitutional reform in Nigeria," and part of the CDD. - Center for Research on Direct Democracy
The Center recently began a project entitled "Constitutional Conventions, Direct Democracy, and Institutional Change." The objective of the project is to measure and to compare the relationship between constituitonal conventions, direct democracy, and institutional change, and to evaluate the specific conflict resolution capacity of constitutional conventions. - Central Intelligence Agency - World Factbook
Listing of the promulgation and/or in force dates for the currently in force constitution for every country in the world. - Comparative Constitutions Project
A project intended to investigate the sources and consequences of constitutional choices through the collection of data on the formal characteristics of written constitutions, both current and historical, for most independent states since 1789. - Constitution Writing & Conflict Resolution
This site contains materials from Jennifer Widner's project on constitutional design processes. It includes a repository with information about steps countries have taken to produce new constitutions since 1975, including over 190 country summaries as well as reports on special topics. - International Network to Promote the Rule of Law (INPROL)
With a digital library of over 1,250 documents, INPROL is a consortium of practitioners joined together to develop the human capacity and intellectual resources required to promote the rule of law in countries transitioning from war to peace.
*INPROL is available to members only, please go the site for details about how to apply for membership. - USIP: Constitution-Making Web Links
Contains documents relating to all aspects of constitution-making, including general resources, national constitutional assemblies, non-governmental organizations and constitutional studies.
Primers on Selected Constitutional Design Topics
- Constitutional Review
- Judicial Appointments and Judicial Independence
- Negotiating Natural Resources for Peace
- Options for Decentralizing Power
National Constitutional Commissions
- Citizens' Constitutional Forum (CCF), Fiji
CCF is a non-partisan civil society organization that has been working since 1992 to secure a democratic constitution and to strengthen institutions of accountability, human rights and multiculturalism in Fiji. Its web site has publications, the text of Fiji constitutions, and related links. - Legal and Constitutional Commission: Rwanda Republic
In French, English and Kinyarwanda, the website describes the mission and objectives of the commission, with news, public feedback, and links to an action plan and a 2003 draft of the Rwanda constitution.
Constitutional Texts
- Government constitution sites
A collection of links to national government websites featuring constitutions. - Constitution Finder, University of Richmond
A database offering constitutions, charters, amendments, and other related documents. - Constitutions, Treaties, and Official Declarations
A site maintained by Richard Kimber that contains constitutions, treaties, and official declarations from around the world. - International Constitutional Law
ICL provides English translations of and other textual material related to constitutional documents. It cross-references those documents for quick comparison of constitutional provisions. - National Constitutions
From the Constitutional Society, the site offers a plethora of national constitutions. - Political Database of the Americas, Georgetown University
PDBA offers centralized and systemized information about institutions and political processes, national constitutions, branches of government, elections, political constitutional studies and other subjects relating to the strengthening of democracy in the region. - WashLaw - International Constitutional Law Resource Page
International Constitutional Law resource page with links to constitutions world wide, constitutional laws of the world, international constitutional courts, and more.
The researchers would be pleased to learn of any other relevant sources. Please click here for contact information.