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As part of our ongoing work in the Kingdom of Bhutan, International IDEA is aiding in the development of a comprehensive civic/voter education programme, including a strategy for the Election Commission of Bhutan (ECB).

Preparations for the November 8 elections in Myanmar are hectic, to say the least. At stake are 1 171 seats at the Pyithu, Amyota and State and Regions Hluttaws assemblies. More than 6 000 candidates nominated from 90 parties are being scrutinized by the election sub commissions. In 2010 there were over 3 000 candidates and 40 parties taking part.

This report examines how national constitutions can improve the delivery of services through decentralization, in particular by exploring the impact that different forms of decentralization and sequencing can have on the outcome.

Countries rich in oil and gas often derive great wealth from these resources. Yet such countries are also often host to chronic economic problems, regional infighting and democratic deficits—factors which lead to high levels of corruption and lack of government accountability in the oil and gas industry.

The term ‘corruption’ is used to describe a wide range of dishonest behaviour, including bribery, embezzlement, abuse of authority, extortion, illicit enrichment, kickbacks, and trading in influence, in addition to actions connected to, and often used to aid in the commission of, corrupt activities such as money laundering, concealment and obstruction of justice.

International IDEA, partnering with Transparency International and the Government and Public Policies School of Pontificia (Universidad Catolica del Peru), organized an international seminar on the Quality of Democracy in Latin America. The seminar is part of the work the IDEA office in Peru is doing to advance this topic in the Andean region and in Peru particularly, leading to the presidential elections next year.

The Solomon Islands has held regular parliamentary elections since independence in 1978 and the voter turnout has been relatively high according to IDEA’s voter turnout database. From the 1980s up to today the turnout has been between 58 to 89 per cent, 89 per cent voting in the November 2014 elections.

Whilst statistics show that Lesotho is doing well in addressing United Nations Millennium Development Goal 3 on “promoting gender equality and empowering women”, equal participation in elections remains an issue of concern. Following the February 2015 elections, only 30 out of 120 Members of Parliaments in the Lower House are female.

STOCKHOLM - International IDEA Secretary-General Yves Leterme is on a working visit to Santo Domingo from 15-21 August. Accompanied by International IDEA Latin America and the Caribbean Director, Daniel Zovatto, the Secretary-General is set to meet with key officials from the Dominican Republic, the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Association of World Election Bodies (AWEB).

On 18 August 2015, International IDEA and the Electoral Commissions Forum of the SADC countries (ECF SADC) signed a memorandum of understanding formalizing the partnership between the two organisations.

Building on past initiatives but also looking at current challenges confronting electoral commissions in the region, the newly signed MoU sets out six key areas of collaboration:

Burkina Faso will hold its general election on 11 October 2015. This election will be the first in 27 years as the country moves forward in its political transition. It is therefore crucial that all actors, including personnel in charge of securing elections, have a good understanding of the electoral process.

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of Lesotho and International IDEA are conducting a roundtable on the Institutionalization of Gender Equality in Electoral Processes in Maseru on 5-6 August 2015.

The constitutional and political reforms undertaken prior to the 2010 general election paved the way for the people of the Kingdom of Tonga to elect more representative governments that are accountable to the electorate.

International IDEA is hosting its first workshop in Melanesia this week on democracy assessments, measurements and data validation. The workshop focuses on using International IDEA’s State of Democracy (SoD) assessment methodology in the Melanesian countries of Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.

Starting 2 August representatives of the African Union, African Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and civil society organizations will attend the inaugural meeting of African Governance Architecture (AGA) platform focusing on democracy and elections, governance, human rights and transitional justice as well as constitutionalism and rule of law throughout the continent.

Much is at stake in the Venezuelan legislative elections. After months of uncertainty, and amidst intense domestic and international pressures, in late June the National Election Board (CNE: Consejo Nacional Electoral) set 6 December as the date for electing the 167 members of the unicameral National Assembly.

International IDEA is pleased to announce that Mongolia will take up the chairmanship of the organization’s Council of Member States in 2016, taking over from Switzerland.

International IDEA’s Secretary-General Yves Leterme made the announcement as he visited Ulaanbaatar, the Mongolian capital, this week to take part in celebrations of the 25th anniversary of the first free, democratic elections in the country. 

Hay mucho en juego en las elecciones legislativas venezolanas. Tras meses de incertidumbre, y en medio de intensas presiones internas e internacionales, a finales de junio el Consejo Nacional Electoral (CNE) estableció el 6 de diciembre para elegir a los 167 miembros de la Asamblea Nacional unicameral.

“The United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) offers an opportunity to make indigenous issues visible at the international level and denounce violations of our rights. Although the UNPFII does not provide with coercive mechanisms, it gives indigenous peoples the opportunity to hold states accountable before the international community and demand that our rights be respected.”  

The Office of International IDEA to the European Union and the Mission of Switzerland to the European Union co-organized on 23 June in a Round-table on ‘Accountability, Follow-up and Review Framework for the Post-2015 Development Agenda’