A trilateral peer-to-peer exchanges* were held for the representatives of Ukrainian authorities with representatives of election management bodies of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic of Croatia having had the experience of holding first post-war elections.

The Ukrainian delegation was comprised of Members of the Central Election Commission of Ukraine (CEC) and staff members of the CEC Secretariat, as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. Members of Parliament of Ukraine - members of the Committee on the Organization of State Power, Local Self-Government, Regional Development and Urban Planning (hereinafter – the Parliamentary Committee), as well as the staff members of the Parliamentary Committee's Secretariat joined the meetings and discussions in online format. A total of 30 representatives of the national authorities of Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic of Croatia took part in these trilateral exchanges.

During the visit, the discussions focused on peers’ experience in specificities of preparing, organising, administering and holding first post-war elections, as well as organising elections during times of crises and natural disasters.

In particular, the participants discussed more in depth the following issues:

• voters’ outreach, registration and voters’ lists;
• use of digital and information communication technologies in the election process (use of electronic voters’ lists, alternative methods of voting, etc.);
• information support to the preparation and conduct of elections and media coverage of elections;
• voters’ education;
• out-of-country voting in the post-war context;
• election administration, organisation and infrastructure;
• gender-balanced participation and representation of women and men in electoral processes, as well as participation of persons with disabilities, in post-war conditions.

As a result, these exchanges have increased the knowledge about the experience of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic of Croatia which will undoubtedly be useful for Ukraine when implementing a number of important tasks entrusted to the Parliamentary Committee, the CEC and MFA as regards the electoral process. It will also be taken into account when developing the rules and procedures for organisation and conduct of first post-war elections in Ukraine in accordance with European election standards and good practices.

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*The onsite visit and trilateral exchanges took place with the support of the Council of Europe project "Supporting democratic post-war elections in Ukraine" upon the request of representatives of the Ukrainian authorities and following the results of the High-level dialogue "Good democratic governance in Ukraine: achievements, challenges and the way forward in the post-war period" which took place in Strasbourg, France, on November 8-9, 2022, and in the follow-up to a series of online meetings between representatives of the Ukrainian authorities with representatives of the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic of Croatia, which were held in the period from February to May 2023.