EEAS and FPI, in cooperation with EODS, organised the annual workshop for Deputy Chief Observers (DCO) in EU Election Observation Missions (EOMs) on 11 and 12 October 2018. This internal seminar took place with the aim of facilitating peer sharing of experiences, lessons learnt and suggestions on how to increase the effectiveness of EU EOMs, both methodologically and operationally. The workshop also intended to present and discuss methodological and operational developments that have been or may be introduced in the EU EOMs, including: the EU EOM reporting manual; ethics in EU missions; the cooperation with the CO and the EP delegation; follow-up mechanism to EU EOMs recommendations. Participants were also invited to attend the High-Level Conference (HLC) on the Future of International Election Observation that took place in Brussels on 10-11 October 2018. The HLC was co-organised by the European Parliament's Democracy Support and Election Observation Group (DEG) and the European External Action Service with support of the European Commission. The HLC focused on the increased public scrutiny international EOMs are exposed to as well as on the new challenges that need to be addressed, such as the impact of the use of ICT sand social networks.
