La Paz, Bolivia – On 9 February 2026, Luis Castellar Maymó, Project Coordinator of the ECES PRO-Elección Bolivia Project, was invited by the Ombudsman, Pedro Calisaya, to the Ombudsman's weekly TV programme. ECES signed a MoU to support the Office of the Ombudsman and Bolivian institutions in strengthening transparent, inclusive, and rights-respecting electoral processes—made possible by the European Union's financial support through the Foreign Policy Instrument (FPI).
They discussed:
1. What does the implementation of a human rights monitoring plan, specifically in electoral processes, mean for National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) 2. In the last national elections, the Bolivian Ombudsman's Office organised a nationwide monitoring plan. What is the perspective of the European Electoral Support Centre 3. What does it mean, and what value does it have, for an NHRI to participate in a monitoring process in a country's electoral processes 4. At the end of a monitoring process, what type of recommendations should an NHRI issue to the State 5. What does an NHRI, such as the Ombudsman's Office, contribute to the observation and monitoring of an electoral process?
They discussed the technical cooperation provided during the 2025 General Elections and outlined a joint roadmap toward the Subnational Elections scheduled for March 2026.
During the meeting, the Ombudsman expressed his appreciation for the technical assistance provided by ECES during both the first and second rounds of the electoral process, highlighting the added value this support brought to institutional strengthening and to the deployment of national electoral observation. He also formally requested ECES’s continued support for the upcoming subnational electoral cycle.
The discussion addressed the new political and administrative context of the country following the installation of the newly elected government, as well as the institutional challenges faced by the Plurinational Electoral Body (OEP) in the ongoing process of selecting and appointing national and departmental electoral officials. The meeting also examined the complex political, social, and economic environment in which the subnational elections will take place, characterised by diverse territorial and thematic conflict dynamics.
ECES is providing technical assistance through the subnational electoral process and to strengthen the capacities of its 21 offices nationwide. The institution emphasised that its work will focus on protecting human rights, attending to vulnerable populations, and monitoring the various conflict contexts affecting the country.
Both institutions recently agreed on a plan to develop methodological tools for the observation process of the Subnational Elections on 22 March 2026.
