Electoral Reform The OSCE recognized the importance of including women in the process of rebuilding the country, particularly in the conflict prevention and reconciliation process. Among others, it supported capacity-building projects targeting women candidates for local and general elections to strengthen their participation in political life. The OSCE played an instrumental role in empowering women to take part in building sustainable peace by ensuring that a gender quota was included in the draft election law. It also facilitated trainings for female candidates from different political parties. All activities aimed to reinforce democratic structures within political parties and encourage co-operation between politicians regardless of their party or ethnic affiliation. Two decades on, the OSCE continues to support efforts to further contribute to the democratization of the election process and its efficiency. 2. Pluralistic political environments Years after the end of a violent conflict, the political landscape was characterized by a broad political party spectrum, ranging from non-nationalist to nationalist. Most international actors, including the OSCE, agreed that multi-ethnicity was a fundamental requirement for building an integrated, stable and democratic society. The OSCE focused on supporting new multi-ethnic parties with campaign financing, and by organizing and implementing various capacity building events. The funds available could be 63