European Union Election Follow-up Mission to Cambodia

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The general objective of the Mission is to assess the progress made in electoral reforms since the 2013 elections. The mission focused its assessment on the implementation of the recommendations and took into account the assessment of the EU Heads of Missions (HoMs) on this matter. In line with the criteria contained in the Commission Communication on Electoral Assistance and Observation [COM(2000)191]1 this follow-up mission complemented and fed other forms of follow-up to EOMs, both financial and non-financial instruments.

The specific objectives of the Mission are the following:

1. Confirm the European Union interest in a real progress on electoral reform and the readiness to support this effort;
2. Make clear to the different leading actors in the country that the EU considers a precondition for any support an effective cooperation between the major political forces, integrating also the civil society;
3. Contribute to the reflection on the orientation that the EU support to electoral reform and democracy strengthening should take in the country.

Tasks:

• Oversee the analysis of the main political issues regarding the electoral reform process.
• Meet political party leaders, political contestants, judiciary, government departments, election administration, international organisations, other relevant state institutions and civil society as well as Member States and the EU Delegation.
• Maintain regular communication with domestic and international organisations involved in the electoral reform process.
• Assess the legal provisions for the participation of women and minorities in the electoral process and in particular in the voter registration process, and other human rights issues.
• Analyse programming and planning issues connected to electoral assistance projects.
• Assess the strengths and limitations of projects to promote and implement reform.
• Provide guidance on the design of future projects based on EU EOM recommendations.
• Establish and maintain contact with the main actors in electoral assistance, including UNDP.
• Prepare recommendations for the electoral commission and other relevant stakeholders.
• Analyse the legal aspects of the activity of the election administration, in particular: a. the election administration’s capability of interpreting national legislation and international commitments in a consistent manner; b. the role of the election administration in election process supervision and electoral dispute resolution; the conduct and effectiveness of complaints and appeals processes.

Type of services provided

Main Outputs:

• A table on the implementation of EU EOM recommendations in the form of a log frame matrix.
• EU Election Follow-Up Expert Mission Final Report, i
• Internal Report of lessons learnt with recommendations on the assignment itself and on future EU follow up missions.

Additional outputs:

• Briefings to EU Delegation and EU HoMs or their representatives.
• Organisation of a round table to share and discuss first findings with national and international stakeholders.
• An archive of contacts and useful documents following a clear file structure to facilitate the work of any subsequent EU election observation activities to be delivery to FPI during the debriefing.
• Targeted recommendations to the authorities and especially to the NEC to improve the electoral framework and its implementation and additional recommendations for future EU involvement and electoral support.

Team

• Political Expert and Team Leader
• Electoral Expert (ideaborn)