• A delegation of the Election Commission of India (EC) led by Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra visited South Africa and Mauritius. 

• A series of meetings were held with the Election Commission of South Africa and Mauritius. 

• During interaction with the members of the Indian community, CEC urged them to register as overseas voters as the present numbers are abysmally low. He also shared with the members that extension of Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) facility to overseas voters is being contemplated.

• A major highlight of the visit was a tripartite meeting between EC, Electoral Commission of South Africa and secretary general of Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB) held in  Pretoria. 

• India is currently the chair of A-WEB and South Africa is the vice chair.

• South Africa will host the next General Assembly of A-WEB in October 2022. 

Association of World Election Bodies 

• The year 2011 witnessed the origin of a new international institution when the National Election Commission of the Republic of Korea (NEC) proposed the establishment of a global association for structural support and firm establishment of democratic elections in emerging democracies. 

• There emerged needs for strategic support for emerging democracies to establish legitimate government through free and fair elections and to achieve economic and social development through political stability as international economic and societal assistance struggled to achieve their fruition due to political unrest and unstable political system in these countries. 

• The proposal was presented at the Conference on the eve of celebration of the 20th year of Association of European Election Officials (ACEEEO) in Hungary. This was followed by adoption of Resolution to establish the Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB). 

• The proposal was further developed through a series of deliberations in the Working Groups, the charter finalised and finally, in October 2013, the establishment of A-WEB was officially announced along with approval of its charter. 

• The A-WEB is the world's largest international organisation in election management.

• Currently, A-WEB is composed of 118 electoral management bodies (EMBs) from 108 countries, including 3 temporary members. 

• The Secretariat of A-WEB is situated in Songdo in South Korea.

• The chairperson of A-WEB serves as the head of the association for a term of two years and presides over the General Assembly and the Executive Board meeting.

• India’s Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra is the chairperson of A-WEB.

Functions of A-WEB:

• Its vision is ‘to foster efficiency and effectiveness in conducting free, fair, transparent and participative elections worldwide’.

• It aims to identify latest trends, challenges and developments in democratic electoral management and electoral processes.

• It facilitates appropriate exchange of experience and expertise among members with the object of strengthening electoral democracy worldwide.

• A-WEB is engaged in a series of activities in the areas of international cooperation.

Manorama Yearbook app is now available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store