The Election Working Group (EWG) is a non-partisan, 32-member network of
civil society
Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere.free and fair elections and
good governance
Good governance is the process of measuring how public institutions conduct public affairs and manage public resources and guarantee the realization of human rights in a manner essentially free of abuse and corruption and with due regard for t ...
in
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
.
The guiding objectives of the EWG are:
1. To support free and fair elections through pre-election,
election day
Election day or polling day is the day on which general elections are held. In many countries, general elections are always held on a Saturday or Sunday, to enable as many voters as possible to participate; while in other countries elections ...
, and post-election observation
2. To conduct voter and
civic education
In the field of political science, civics is the study of the civil and political rights and obligations of citizens in a society. The term ''civics'' derives from the Latin word ''civicus'', meaning "relating to a citizen". In U.S. politics, ...
in key thematic areas that encourage the full participation of all segments of society in the electoral process
3. To promote
electoral reform
Electoral reform is a change in electoral systems that alters how public desires, usually expressed by cast votes, produce election results.
Description
Reforms can include changes to:
* Voting systems, such as adoption of proportional represen ...
through public dialogue and advocacy
The National Secretariat of the EWG, headed by a Director, coordinates the day-to-day activities of the EWG on behalf of its members, with oversight from an elected Executive Committee.
Through its wide and varied membership, the EWG has outreach down to the village level throughout Bangladesh, making it an effective network through which to deliver voter information materials and to recruit both stationary and mobile
election observers
Election monitoring involves the observation of an election by one or more independent parties, typically from another country or from a non-governmental organization (NGO). The monitoring parties aim primarily to assess the conduct of an elect ...
.
A national network, but international in reach, EWG members have participated in election observation missions in various countries, including Thailand and the Philippines.
EWG Programs
The EWG has implemented several programs since its establishment. These include:
Preparation for the 2006 elections: the EWG planned to implement voter education and election observation activities for the cancelled January 2007. Using a multi-tier program delivery mechanism, the network had outreach to the sub-union level. By early January 2007, when the EWG pre-election program activities were suspended on the basis of a consensus decision of all members, the EWG secretariat and member organizations had recruited and trained 64 district coordinators, over 500 sub-district or thana coordinators, and more than 5,000 union coordinators to implement field activities. Over 165,000 stationary and mobile observers were prepared to act as election day observers.
EWG monthly public perception studies: Since February 2007, the EWG has conducted monthly national public perception studies on the political and economic environment under the
state of emergency
A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state before, during, o ...
. The studies probe key aspects of public opinion such as citizen concerns about current policies, confidence in the Caretaker Government, perceptions of the economy, views on
anti-corruption
Anti-corruption (or anticorruption) comprises activities that oppose or inhibit corruption. Just as corruption takes many forms, anti-corruption efforts vary in scope and in strategy. A general distinction between preventive and reactive measur ...
activities, and overall appraisal of current circumstances as compared to those under the past elected government.
EWG support for the national voter registration process: Between August 2007 and August 2008 the EWG conducted a nationwide program of voter education designed to motivate eligible voters to complete registration for the milestone national
electoral roll
An electoral roll (variously called an electoral register, voters roll, voters list, poll book or other description) is a compilation that lists persons who are entitled to vote for particular elections in a particular jurisdiction. The list is ...
with photographs. This was carried out through a cooperative working relationship with the
Bangladesh Election Commission
The Bangladesh Election Commission (), abbreviated and publicly referred to as EC, is a government controlled constitutional body that operates the Law, legal functions of election laws in Bangladesh.
Article 118 of the Constitution of Bangla ...
. The EWG campaign had a strong focus on historically difficult to reach segments of the population including women, ethnic and religious minorities, disabled persons, and residents of geographically remote areas.
EWG city corporation election activities: the EWG was actively engaged in the August 4, 2008 city corporation and pourashava elections with a program consisting of election observation and voter education activities. The local government elections provided an opportunity to test coordinating mechanisms and program delivery and other systems and procedures that EWG will utilize on a larger scale in the upcoming national parliamentary and upazila elections.
2008 national parliamentary elections: the EWG has developed a comprehensive voter education and election observation plan for the 2008 election. Voter education activities will emphasize: creating a knowledgeable electorate; the need to vote for candidates with clear policies; and citizen demand for greater accountability of elected representatives. These themes are evident in its array of
public service announcement
A public service announcement (PSA) is a message in the public interest disseminated by the media without charge to raise public awareness and change behavior. Oftentimes these messages feature unsettling imagery, ideas or behaviors that are des ...
s for television and
radio broadcast
Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...
, brochures, posters, and other printed materials, and locally organized activities such as
town hall meeting
Town hall meetings, also referred to as town halls or town hall forums, are a way for local and national politicians to meet with their constituents either to hear from them on topics of interest or to discuss specific upcoming legislation or ...
s and candidate debates. While voter education is designed to strengthen the content of the elections, EWG has a comprehensive election observation plan in which observers will be deployed to all polling booths throughout Bangladesh.
EWG Funding
As a coalition of established organizations, the EWG serves as a cost-efficient mechanism for implementing election-related programs nationwide. All member organizations devote staff time and resources. Importantly, they can be mobilized in a short period of time to deliver programs. Since 2006, the EWG has received financial support and technical assistance from The
Asia Foundation
The Asia Foundation (TAF) is a nonprofit international development organization focused on improving lives across Asia. Its programs operate in various sectors, including governance, women's empowerment and gender equality, inclusive economic gr ...
Department for International Development
The Department for International Development (DFID) was a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the government of the United Kingdom, from 1997 to 2020. It was responsible for administering foreign aid ...
(DFID), the Royal Danish Embassy, the Royal Norwegian Embassy, the Swedish
International Development
International development or global development is a broad concept denoting the idea that societies and countries have differing levels of economic development, economic or human development (economics), human development on an international sca ...
Kingdom of the Netherlands
The Kingdom of the Netherlands (, ;, , ), commonly known simply as the Netherlands, is a sovereign state consisting of a collection of constituent territories united under the monarch of the Netherlands, who functions as head of state. The re ...