HARARE, (The Southern African Times) – The African Union (AU) has deployed election observers in Central African Republic (CAR) and Niger, for the general elections scheduled to take place on Dec. 27, 2020 in the two AU member states.
The Chairperson of the AU Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, has made the decision to deploy the AU electoral observation missions (AUEOM) in the two countries, said the 55-member pan-African bloc in a statement on Wednesday.
The missions deployed from Dec. 21 to Dec. 31 are made up of electoral observers and experts as well as officials of the AU Commission.
The mission to CAR is led by Mali’s former Prime Minister Modibo Sidibe, while the mission to Niger is led by Mauritania’s former Prime Minister Sghair Ould M’Bareck.
The deployment of the missions in the two countries is in accordance with the relevant provisions of AU on the principles governing democratic elections in Africa, AU guidelines for election observation and monitoring missions, as well as the African charter for democracy, elections and governance.
This deployment is also in line with one of AU’s aspirations in the Agenda 2063, aiming to ensure good governance, democracy, respect for human rights, and justice among others in Africa.
The missions are expected to among others provide accurate reports including an impartial assessment of the general elections, including the level of their compliance with national, regional, continental and international standards governing democratic elections.
They will also formulate recommendations for the improvement of future electoral processes in the two countries on the basis of the findings, thereby demonstrating AU’s solidarity and support to the electoral process in the two countries, ensuring that the conduct of said elections contribute to the consolidation of democratic governance, peace and stability.
