Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia Alen Simonyan today received representatives of the partnering organizations of the Strengthening Electoral Processes and Political Accountability (SEPPA), including Director of the International Republican Institute (IRI) for Armenia James De Witt, the Electoral Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) Country Director for Armenia Jérôme Leyraud and Head of the National Democracy Institute (NDI) in Armenia Laura Nichols.

Simonyan highlighted the efforts of the partnering organizations aimed at supporting the democratic processes and effective implementation of the cooperation programs with the National Assembly of Armenia. The parliamentary speaker underlined the need for favorable and continuous cooperation with international partners.

The main discussion was held over the activities that the SEPPA has been carrying out since 2018, and the goals and the peculiarities of the program were presented. The program is a seven-year program funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development and implemented by the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening. Cooperating with the government, parliament, political parties and the stakeholders of the civil society in Armenia, the program helps foster integrity of the elections. The format of cooperation specifically with parliament was touched upon. The goal of the cooperation with the parliament is to support and build the capacities of the parliament to increase efficiency of the activities of the legislature and MPs.

The interlocutors attached importance to the efficient cooperation between the National Assembly and the international organizations operating in Armenia, as well as the exchange of experience.