On April 26-29, 2021 Kyrgyzstan Electoral Support Programme of UNDP and the Central Election Commission of the Kyrgyz Republic organized training on Political Finance for 25 representatives of political parties, governmental organizations and civil society working on elections. The training was organized based on the international BRIDGE method.

During the four-days training on political financing, participants learned about international standards and the system of political financing, get acquainted with the restrictions on the income and expenses of political parties and candidates in different countries of the world, updated knowledge about the principles of reporting of political parties and candidates, and the monitoring system of election campaigns financing.

"The training helps to understand deeper the principles and rules of the political financing. We also learnt about the responsibilities incurred in case of violation of these principles and rules. I hope that the knowledge gained will allow representatives of civil society to contribute to the development and improvement of the culture of political financing in the Kyrgyz Republic”, - said Bakytbek Samakov, elections expert of Public Fund “Common Cause” based in Kyrgyzstan.

Political finance processes once regulated through the legal framework, structures and institutes, it allows to solve issues of election campaigns and political parties related to funding on one hand.

On the other hand, it serves as a basis of the democratic process through ensuring transparency of the election process, as well as safeguarding the accountability of the political parties and candidates to voters, thus promote mutual trust and sustain peaceful relations.

The event is facilitated by Accrediting Level BRIDGE facilitators Yuliya Shypilova, UNDP Chief Technical Advisor on Electoral Support, and Tetyana Bibik, UNDP International Expert, and an honorable Guest Speaker – Ms. Barbara JOUAN STONESTREET, Political Finance Expert participating online from Atlanta, USA.

BRIDGE is unique international curriculum in the electoral area which was successfully conducted worldwide. It represents a unique initiative where five leading organizations in the democracy and governance field (United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Electoral Assistance Division (UNEAD), International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), International IDEA, Australian Electoral Commission (AEC)) have jointly committed to developing, implementing and maintaining the most comprehensive curriculum and workshop package available, designed to be used as a tool within a broader capacity development framework.

Media contacts:

Ainagul Abdrakhmanova

Communications Officer

Ainagul.abdrakhmanova@undp.org

Tel: +996 770 183 493

Snapshots from the event

Photo: Jan Usenov / UNDP Kyrgyzstan