Around 25 representatives of the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Moldova and the Centre for Continuous Electoral Training actively participated in the BRIDGE (Building Resources in Democracy, Governance and Elections) methodology trainings on organised by the Council of Europe.
The four-day BRIDGE workshop focused on the structure and operation of the electoral management institutions, rather than on the electoral processes and delivery they oversee. Participants gained knowledge and practical skills aimed at strengthening and protecting the Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs) and their reputations, ensuring EMBs to carry out their mandate with integrity and efficiency, thereby upholding the legitimacy of electoral processes accordance with provisions of the Electoral Code of the Republic of Moldova and international standards.
Mr Falk LANGE, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Chisinau emphasized in his opening remarks that “In all democracies, issues of citizen trust in electoral management bodies and electoral processes are a key. That is why the abilities and skills of electoral administration to ensure appropriate organisational culture and recruitment, effective leadership, selection and retention of electoral staff, effective communication, continuous improvement to ensure high-performance, and other topics to be learned during this workshop, are vital to strengthen the institutional capacities and, consequently, to building public confidence in the electoral processes and the electoral system.”
During the workshop, the representatives of the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Moldova, Centre for Continuous Electoral Training and district electoral councils learned about the building blocks and enablers of the institutional excellence through practical approaches. They explored internal and external challenges, and designed organisational strategies necessary to achieve institutional excellence.
This activity is part of a broader capacity building efforts for the electoral administration ahead of the upcoming presidential of 2024, EU-related referendum, considering the partial implementation of postal voting for Moldovan citizens abroad.
All participants successfully completed the training and were awarded with the BRIDGE certificates.
The workshop was organised within the framework of the Council of Europe Project Improving Electoral Practice in the Republic of Moldova, Phase III, in cooperation with the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Moldova.
