Photo taken April 20, 2008 in Asunción, the day of historic elections in Paraguay, marked by transparency, an exemplary public spirit, and a high level of participation.

A group of 13 civil society stakeholder organizations worked intensively during the months before the elections. Their plan: place citizens at the center of the election process in a non-partisan way, focusing on institutional strengthening, transparency, candidate accountability and the legitimacy of the results.

AVINA played a key role in this strategy, which networked civil society organizations with international observers from institutions such as the Organization of American States, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, and the Inter-American Institute for Human Rights’ Center for Electoral Advisory Services and Promotion (Centro de Asesoría y Promoción Electoral). For some time prior to the elections, AVINA helped individuals and organizations look beyond their individual projects and focus on a common agenda of making sure the elections were fair and transparent, an opportunity of national and regional importance that could not be missed.

In this spirit, AVINA helped establish an inter-institutional working group to guarantee electoral transparency through initiatives such as a parallel counting system, professional training within relevant public institutions and a monitoring center for rapid response to electoral complaints.

But the elections were only a beginning. The new political moment in Paraguay has allowed for government representatives, the private sector and civil society to join forces in seeking consensus on a new vision for the country’s future for 2030, a process many AVINA partners are involved in to create a nation that is more inclusive, supportive, educated, prosperous, sustainable and governable.