OSCE and EU help develop training system for election commissioners in Ukraine

KYIV, 29 November 2010 - Experts and officials discussed how to train election commission members during an OSCE-supported conference held in Kyiv today. 

The event gathered representatives of Ukraine's Central Election Commission, members of the Parliament, representatives of government bodies, political parties, international organizations and election experts. They discussed how a sustainable training system for election officials can be established and looked at potential legislative regulation of these matters.

"The level of preparedness of election officials to organize and conduct elections is not just a technical matter. It affects the ability of citizens to freely and effectively exercise their electoral rights and the overall quality of the election process," said Ambassador Lubomir Kopaj, OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine. "Ukraine would benefit from a training system to prepare election officials that does not depend on support from the international community."

International experts presented best practices and examples of regulating this issue in the OSCE area.

"During the last ten years, trainings for the election commission members in Ukraine was organized with financial and technical support from international organizations, including the OSCE Project Co-ordinator. Until this day, there have been no or very limited state budget allocated for this purpose," said Oleksandr Chupakhin, a Central Election Commission member.

The conference was part of continuing efforts by the OSCE and the EU to assist Ukraine's work to improve its election legislation.

The "Assistance in Further Strengthening of Election Processes in Ukraine" project is currently funded by the European Union and the Canadian International Development Agency. The project has assisted Ukraine in establishing a State Voter Register, in training election officials and in drafting a unified election code.