The CEC participates in the second Forum of Electoral Management Bodies in the Arab States

The second Forum of Electoral Management Bodies in the Arab States which was held over two days at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States in Cairo, concluded its works last Thursday, with participation of the CEC in its capacity as a member of the Forum.

The CEC delegation included the Secretary –General of the CEC, Ms. Lamis Al-Alami, Commissioner, Mr. Shukri Nashashibi and CEO, Mr. Hisham Kuhail. Participants in the Forum included representatives from Arab Electoral Management Bodies and regional and international elections organizations.

The Second Forum came in continuation and consolidation of the achievements of the first Forum which was held in May 2016 and to highlight the technical challenges facing elections, in particular, those in relevance to ‘’ voter registration’’ and to enhance regional knowledge of voter registration practices. This issue is of high importance to member States given the fact that voter registration is fundamental for the success of any electoral event. Accordingly, member states were given the opportunity to present the types of voter registration, registry update, mechanisms for ensuring participation of all eligible voters, particularly, women, youth and persons with disabilities. On its part, the CEC presented a paper on voter registration mechanism in Palestine and tools for maintaining an up to date and accurate voter registry.

It is worth mentioning that in light of the Arab League’s resolution in 2015, the Forums are organized as part of the cooperation between the League of Arab States’ Electoral Affairs Department, the United Nations Electoral Assistance Division and UNDP’s Regional Electoral Support for the Arab States for the aim of enabling member states to come together and discuss cooperation and communication channels between and among themselves as well as with relevant regional and international organizations.

he Forum offers a platform for member states to come together and discuss establishing renewed cooperation and communication channels between and among themselves as well as with relevant regional and international organizations. The event is aimed at enhancing and consolidating the achievements of the first Forum, while moving from general aspects of the electoral process and electoral administration towards more specific issue areas and technical challenges in the conduct of elections.