u u u u u u Further developing the publicly accessible election expert database with a view to establishing an open roster for heads of mission; Enhancing accessibility of a roster for core-team positions; Increasing knowledge about the roster through wider dissemination and its advertisement in relevant periodicals to attract qualified applications; Exploring possibilities, including identification of adequate funds, to introduce an open and competitive mechanism that will allow the ODIHR to recruit heads for its election observation missions and other core personnel; Reiterating requests to OSCE States to encourage competent professionals to apply in order to reach out to such individuals who have hitherto not participated in election observation missions due to non-transparent or restrictive secondment policies; Encouraging States to introduce transparent and competitive procedures for the identification and selection of STOs and LTOs, and to keep it informed about their practices in this regard. VI. Establish a practitioners network among election observers In order to better capture practical knowledge from election observation practitioners, the ODIHR could benefit from a network of experts who have served in observations throughout the years. They have helped develop and enhance the methodology and have contributed to the ODIHR’s performance in this area. In order to maintain an enhanced and more structured network and allow the ODIHR to maximize past experience in future activities, the ODIHR will: u Promptly explore modalities to establish a practitioners network among ODIHR election observation experts, which should serve as a standing feedback mechanism designed to improve the delivery of election observation conducted by the ODIHR, to identify lessons learned, and to propose innovations; u Provide opportunities for periodic interaction with national election administrators and domestic observer groups. VII. Develop public outreach and training support One critical factor in increasing the participation of observers from countries that have been underrepresented so far is the capacity of potential observers to participate in such missions effectively. The necessary skills include specific observation expertise, but also linguistic proficiency, general adeptness, and the ability to work in a diverse team and comply with the high professional standards and the relevant codes of conduct. In several countries, targeted training is provided at the national level, which visibly and significantly improves the performance of observers in the field. The ODIHR has regularly supported training efforts over the years by making members of its Elections Department available for training. An important factor in providing training for observers is to ensure that recruitment is connected to training programmes, i.e., that people who are trained are also actually deployed, and that people who are deployed have received training, and have actively participated in it. In order to assist States with these efforts, the ODIHR will: u Maintain a training programme for international election observers to complement States’ efforts and other ODIHR ad hoc efforts in this regard; 52 Common Responsibility: Commitments and Implementation