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The Inter-American Electoral Training Seminars are initiatives led by the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (GS/OAS) in collaboration with the Federal Electoral Institute of Mexico (IFE) and the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA). These training seminars are events designed to promote the improvement of the organization and administration of electoral processes and systems throughout the hemisphere. The first four editions of the Seminar involved the participation of 142 officials of electoral bodies from 32 OAS Member States. The selection process is designed so that there are no repeat participants, ensuring that the training is imparted to the largest number of staff in various technical areas of the electoral bodies.
The Fourth Inter-American Training Seminar, held from November 14-18 at IFE headquarters in Mexico City, represented another successful step in the ongoing series of professionalization activities for electoral authorities in the region. Like its predecessors it aimed to enrich the knowledge of participants by stimulating theoretical and practical discussions and providing a forum to share regional experiences of electoral management.
This year’s seminar focused on two topics: “Mechanisms of Transparency in Electoral Systems,” and “The Transmission of Electoral Results”. The methodology of the training seminar comprised two distinct areas:
This Inter-American Training Seminars are not designed as training events with definite beginnings and ends, but rather as continuous training processes which involve diverse activities connected by a common objective: improving the capacities of the electoral authorities. One initiative that provides continuity to the work of the Inter-American Electoral Seminar is the “Advanced Course on Electoral Processes in the Americas” developed in collaboration with FLACSO Chile and the Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) of Mexico. This Advanced Course is a complementary initiative, through which the OAS General Secretariat hopes to continue strengthening the technical capacities of electoral authorities, with the aim that this effort will be contribute to the continuous strengthening of democratic systems in the region.