The Central Election Commission (CEC) is hosting the thirteenth International Conference of Election Administrations. The main theme of the conference is “Disinformation Strategies, Artificial Intelligence and the Role of Social Networks in Ensuring Information Reliability”.

Giorgi Kalandarishvili, Chairman of the Central Election Commission, opened the international conference. Speakers at the event included MPs Archil Gorduladze and Davit Matikashvili, chairs of the parliamentary committees on legal affairs and procedural issues, respectively, as well as Public Defender Levan Ioseliani and Communications Commission Chairman Goga Gulordava.

According to the CEC, over the course of two days, participants in the international conference will discuss important issues such as the impact of disinformation on electoral processes; disinformation as a policy challenge: mechanisms, contributing factors and impact; the role of artificial intelligence and social networks in electoral processes: opportunities and risks; and the role of information and education in combating disinformation.

As Giorgi Kalandarishvili noted at the opening of the conference, the international conference has made a significant contribution to building an international professional network based on mutual trust, cooperation and shared responsibility in protecting democratic values.

“The Central Election Commission is, as is traditional, hosting the International Conference of Election Administrations for the thirteenth time, within the framework of which substantive discussions, the exchange of professional experience and the examination of practices from different countries will make an important contribution both to strengthening our institutions and to safeguarding information resilience and democratic processes. This year, we chose ‘Disinformation Strategies, Artificial Intelligence and the Role of Social Networks in Ensuring Information Reliability’ as the main theme of our meeting. These issues are particularly relevant in today’s world, where the development of digital technologies has significantly changed the processes of creating, disseminating and receiving information.

While artificial intelligence and social networks offer new opportunities to boost access to information and civic engagement, they simultaneously increase the risks of disinformation, manipulation and undue influence on public opinion. That is precisely why it is important for election administrations, state institutions and international partners to jointly discuss these challenges and develop effective approaches to protecting information reliability and democratic processes,” said the Chairman of the CEC at the opening of the conference.

The conference is being held on June 17–18. It brings together representatives of election administrations from 23 countries, international organisations working on electoral issues, and companies working in the field of electoral technologies (A-WEB, Smartmatic). The conference is also attended by representatives of Georgia’s legislative body, state institutions, the Supreme Council of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, and the Central Election Commission of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara.