March 11, 2022
The General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (OAS), through the Department for Electoral Cooperation and Observation (DECO), formed a High-Level Group to promote the implementation of the recommendations of the Electoral Observation Missions (EOM) in the field of women’s political participation.
The group is headed by the former President of Costa Rica Laura Chinchilla and made up of Diana Atamaint, Chair of the National Electoral Council of Ecuador; Gabriela Cuevas, former President of the Interparliamentary Union and former Mexican legislator; Isabel de Saint Malo, former Vice President and former Foreign Minister of Panama; María Ángela Holguín, former Foreign Minister of Colombia; Luciana Lossio, former Minister of the Superior Electoral Court of Brazil; and Rosina Wiltshire, international expert in development and gender equality, from Barbados.
These prominent regional leaders will share their experiences as candidates, legislators, governors, presidents or professionals in the electoral field, and will seek to work closely with authorities, political parties and civil society to continue to advance in the development and consolidation of administrative or legal reforms that lead to a long-term transformation in terms of women’s political participation.
The OAS Electoral Observation Missions have analyzed this issue since 2011 and made recommendations aimed at achieving more inclusive electoral processes that allow women in the Americas to fully exercise their political rights.
The official launch of the High-Level Group will take place in the near future. This project has been possible thanks to the contribution of the Government of Canada.