Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 20 November 2025
208. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on increasing funding to the OSCE for election observation on the basis that investment in such processes protects and strengthens democratic processes and institutions (details supplied) [65027/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Government is committed to supporting democratisation, human rights, and the rule of law, as a key element of our foreign policy. Support to election observation is central to this commitment and Ireland has contributed observers to international election observation missions since the 1990s.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade maintains and administers a roster enabling Ireland to respond to calls to participate in election observation missions coordinated by the OSCE and the EU. The current five-year Roster commenced on 1 January 2024 and has 170 members.
Since the start of 2024, 111 members of the Roster, including 77 this year, have participated in 26 election observation missions across five continents. Roster members have represented Ireland on OSCE missions to Albania, Azerbaijan (twice), Bosnia & Herzegovina, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova (twice), Mongolia, North Macedonia (twice), Romania, Serbia, the United States, and Uzbekistan. Members have also participated on EU Missions to Bolivia, Ecuador, Guyana, Honduras, Jordan, Kosovo, Malawi, Mozambique, Philippines, Senegal, and Sri Lanka.
The budget for Ireland’s Roster has increased by 50%, from €200,000 in 2024, to €300,000 in 2025. This budget is limited to supporting nominations to missions in countries eligible to receive Official Development Assistance (ODA), as classified by the OECD. Where missions arise in countries which are not eligible for ODA, financial support may be provided from other budget lines to allow for participation, as was the case for the US Elections in 2024 and Romanian Elections in 2025.
We have a very constructive relationship with the OSCE, and Ireland is consistently very well represented on OSCE election monitoring missions.
