EC to host global conference on 'Use of Technology and Elections Integrity'

New Delhi, Jan 22 (IANS) The Election Commission of India will host the second International Conference on the theme 'Use of Technology and Elections Integrity' here from Monday.

The two-day conference will be inaugurated by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and the concluding session will be chaired by Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey. Election Commissioner Arun Goel will chair the first technical session.

The EC, as the lead for the Cohort on 'Election Integrity', took a collaborative approach and invited Greece, Mauritius, and the IFES to be co-leads for the cohort. It has invited International Foundation for Electoral Systems and International IDEA, apart from Election Management Bodies (EMBs) and government counterparts dealing with the conduct of elections worldwide.

Around 43 participants from 17 countries/EMBs including Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Chile, Croatia, Dominica, Fiji, Georgia, Indonesia, Kiribati, Mauritius, Nepal, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines and Suriname and six participants from international organisations namely, IFES, International IDEA are expected to join.

Representatives from a number of foreign missions located at New Delhi are also expected to attend the conference.

India's EC is leading the Cohort on Elections Integrity which was established as a follow up to the 'Summit for Democracy' held virtually in December 2021. The first international conference of the cohort organised here on October 31-November 1, 2022 on the topic 'Role, Framework and Capacity of Election Management Bodies' where nearly 50 representatives from EMBs of 11 countries participated.