The goal of the project is to support democratic governance and enhance the participation of civil society in decision-making processes at the local level. The project focuses on three main components. First, the project aims to help community organizations, both Islamic and secular, including women-focused organizations, to strengthen people's participation in the democratic process. Second, the project aims to increase these groups' ability to support outreach to local communities and to incorporate a gender-sensitive perspective. Third, the project is designed to assist the government to increase its capacity in planning, budgeting, monitoring, and incorporating a gender-sensitive perspective in relation to the outreach activities of these community groups. This approach supports participatory development and includes activities such as awareness-raising on democratic governance practices and the promotion of networks among community groups and Islamic institutions of higher learning and with Canadian universities.