Italian government and the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Beira, in a process that entailed the building of mutual confidence between the FRELIMO government and RENAMO and the creation of democratic institutions. The GPA was a detailed blueprint for a truce, the demobilisation of armed forces, the demining and reopening of roads to facilitate the resettlement of a huge number of refugees and other displaced people, humanitarian issues, and democratic elections. 101. Since 1992, the Mozambican government has instituted several economic, social and political reforms to put conditions in place for socioeconomic development based on the foundation of democratic pluralism, inclusiveness, periodic free and fair elections, the rule of law, respect for human rights and the reduction of the potential for intra- and inter-state conflicts. It has also begun reforms in the way in which the government does business, seeking to check corruption, improve on the service delivery capacity of the public service and ensure greater popular participation in governance through decentralisation. The implementation of the GPA allowed the realisation of the first-ever general and presidential elections in 1994, and the subsequent general and presidential elections in 1999 and in 2004. All of this goes to explain why Mozambique’s turnaround has been successful thus far and is sustainable. Political Reforms 102. In the wake of the GPA of 1992, Mozambique has undergone political and economic restructuring, rapidly moving from the 16 years of civil war and one-party autocracy to a multiparty democracy. Sociopolitical changes that occurred in the world in the late 1980s enabled the introduction of broad political reforms towards a liberal democracy. The approval of the 1990 Constitution accelerated the democratisation process in general and provided for an environment more conducive to dialogue, participation and the organisation of democratic elections. 103. Since 1994, conflict has been contained consistently, resulting in the cementing of a multiparty atmosphere. To date, the country has had three presidential and parliamentary elections (in 1994, 1999 and 2004) and three municipal elections (in 1998, 2003 and 2008) and is set for its first provincial elections as well as legislative and presidential elections in 2009. The new Constitution approved in 2004 deepens democratic liberties and is in tune with an environment of economic growth. It favours the chances of both domestic and foreign investment in social areas, including the steadily developing media sector. In the first democratic election of 1994, Joaquim Chissano was elected as President with 53 per cent of the vote. A 250-member National Assembly was voted in with 129 FRELIMO deputies, 112 RENAMO deputies and nine representatives of three smaller parties that formed the Democratic Union (UD). Since its formation in 1994, the National Assembly has made some progress in becoming a body increasingly more independent of the Executive. 65