Elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are a priority for the Electoral Commissions Forum of the Southern African Development Community (ECF SADC) because the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections are only the second democratic elections since the signing of the Sun City accords in 2002.
Given the post-conflict challenges facing the DRC at the time, without the assistance of the international community, the first democratic elections would have unsuccessfully organised.
In the run up to the second democratic elections, the guns have fallen silent but the setting remains unchanged. Contemporary challenges include the vast size of the DRC with its limited infrastructure; the wide electoral landscape (in 2006, there were more than 200 political parties); and the limited government and international financial support for ensuring logistical support and security.
The role of the ECF SADC is to ensure that the newly established Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) is able to execute credible elections.
This project will assist with ensuring that CENI operates independently and impartially; encouraging the development, and promotion, of a democratic culture; encouraging adherence to regional, and international, principles of election management, with special emphasis on the Principles for Election Management Monitoring and Organisation (PEMMO) and the ECF SADC guidelines on the independence of Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs); and facilitating access to, and sharing of, dispute resolution mechanisms of other ECF SADC commissions.
This project seeks to promote a relationship between CENI, other regional electoral commissions and Congolese civil society; and support the development, and implementation, of effective voter and civic education programmes.
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