New Delhi, Sep 22 (IANS) Chief Election Commissioner and Chairman of the Council of Member States of International IDEA Gyanesh Kumar on Tuesday discussed issues related to democratic cooperation with envoys from Moldova, the Philippines and the Kyrgyz Republic, an official said.
CEC Gyanesh Kumar met Ambassador of Moldova to India Inga Ionesii at Nirvachan Sadan.
“Both sides reaffirmed their shared commitment to strengthening democratic cooperation, in line with the vision set out at IICDEM 2026. They also agreed to work closely together to deepen collaboration on election management and the training of election staff,” said a statement.
The Chief Election Commissioner also interacted with Josel Francisco Ignacio, Ambassador of the Philippines to India at Nirvachan Sadan.
Issues related to election management and the training of election staff also came up during the meeting, the statement said.
Askar Beshimov, Ambassador of the Kyrgyz Republic to India, also discussed matters related to democratic cooperation with CEC Gyanesh Kumar.
Last month, CEC Gyanesh Kumar met the Ambassador of Mongolia, Ulziit Luvsanjav and discussed democratic cooperation and training for election staff.
As a global acknowledgement of free, fair and transparent elections held by the Election Commission of India and all the election staff of the country, CEC Gyanesh Kumar assumed the Chairship of International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) on December 3, 2025 at Stockholm, Sweden, on behalf of India.
International IDEA, established in 1995, is an intergovernmental organisation with a current membership of 35 countries, with the United States and Japan as Observers. International IDEA has also held observer status in the UN General Assembly since 2003, the statement said.
India is a founding member of International IDEA and has actively participated in governance processes and collaborated on electoral research, capacity building, and training programmes.
As the world’s largest democracy with more than 90 crore electors, India is leveraging its extensive experience in electoral administration after assuming the Chairship of International IDEA for 2026, contributing to strengthening Election Management Bodies across the world, a statement said.
