Panel discussions and speakers for the fifth Asian Electoral Stakeholders Forum (AESF 5) was announced today, 13 October 2021.

AESF 5, which will be hosted online this year on 20-21 October 2021, will hold four panel discussions on (1) addressing electoral challenges and democratic backsliding in Asia, (2) success stories of holding elections during COVID-19, (3) promoting electoral reforms through cooperation between EMBs and CSOs, and (4) improving electoral integrity using technology and open data.

Prior to the forum, three working groups on (1) fostering more inclusive and participatory elections, (2) challenges to electoral integrity and possible solutions, and (3) best practices for election management during the COVID-19 pandemic, have been meeting. Inputs from those meetings would form part of a document that will be presented at the end of AESF 5 for endorsement and adoption.

Timor Leste former president and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Jose Ramos-Horta will be the keynote speaker while former commissioner of the Election Commission of Thailand Assoc. Prof. Gothom Arya will be the guest speaker.

AESF 5 is co-hosted by the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) and the Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB). This year's theme is "Lessons Learned: The Way Forward for Elections in Asia Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic."

To join AESF 5, please register at https://aesf.anfrel.org/registration/.