On 3 July 2019, WFD hosted their annual reception in Parliament to celebrate their achievements over the last year, after holding a roundtable on youth representation in East Africa. The reception brought together over 120 guests including parliamentarians, civil servants and experts on democracy and international development.

Among the guest speakers was Secretary of State for International Development, Rory Stewart, who delivered a speech expressing words of encouragement for WFD’s work on democracy assistance:

“It is with humility and a sense of genuine partnership and mutual learning that we will tackle the global challenges of democracy today.”

Richard Graham MP and Rushanara Ali MP, Chair and Vice-Chair of the WFD Board of Governors respectively, also spoke at the reception, emphasising the importance of strengthening democracy worldwide.

Rushanara Ali MP spoke of her personal experience coming from Bangladesh, a country that lost millions of lives in the fight for freedom and democracy, saying “Democracy is a life-or-death matter.”

Thanks to the generous support demonstrated at the annual reception, WFD will continue to help empower marginalised groups and work towards fairer, more inclusive democracies around the world.