Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The Department of Foreign Affairs maintains and administers a voluntary roster of suitably skilled and vetted individuals who are available to participate at short notice in election observation missions, organised by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the European Union (EU).

The current Election Observation Roster was established for a period of five years, from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2023. To inform planning, expressions of interest were sought from those who were interested in applying to be a member of Ireland's next election observation roster. A deadline will be set for the submission of applications in the near future.

By 26 May 2023, the Department had received 250 expressions of interest. Of these, 141 are members of the current roster.

Based on the names provided, it is estimated that 33% of expressions of interest were from women. However, specific information on gender was not required at this stage of the process and will be sought at the application stage.

It is likely that the number of applications will exceed the number of expressions of interest received. All relevant information will be available on the Department's website at Election observation - Department of Foreign Affairs (irishaid.ie).

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Department of Foreign Affairs maintains and administers a voluntary roster of suitably skilled and vetted individuals who are available to participate at short notice in election observation missions, organised by the EU and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

Short term observers generally spend up to eight days in the country where the election is being held. Long term observers can spend up to eight weeks. The number of deployments fluctuates annually, depending on the number of applications received and the selection decisions of the EU and OSCE.

Members of the Roster will participate in upcoming election observation missions in Montenegro, Sierra Leone, Guatemala and Uzbekistan.

One roster member is currently in Montenegro as a long-term observer with the OSCE mission to observe the Early Parliamentary Elections, which are scheduled for 11 June 2023. Five additional roster members will be deployed as short-term observers with this mission.

One roster member is currently in Sierra Leone as a long-term observer with the EU mission to observe the general elections which are scheduled for 24 June 2023. Two additional roster members will be deployed as short-term observers with this mission.

One roster member is currently in Guatemala as a long-term observer with the EU mission to observe the general elections which are scheduled for 25 June 2023. Two additional roster members will be deployed as short-term observers with this mission.

One roster member will shortly join the OSCE mission as a long-term observer to observe the early Presidential Election in Uzbekistan which is scheduled for 9 July 2023. Ireland will nominate up to five additional roster members as short-term observers with this mission.