The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union (AU) have deployed a Joint Pre-election Fact-finding Mission to Liberia to assess the country’s state of preparedness for the polls come October.
The 23-29 July Mission is being co-led by Professor Attahiru Jega, former Chairman of the Independent Nigerian Electoral Commission (INEC) of Nigeria for ECOWAS, and Ambassador Calixte Mbari, Head of Democracy, Elections and Constitutionalism of the African Union Commission.
Other members of the Mission are Ambassador Haja Alari Cole, member of the ECOWAS Council of the Wise, Ms. Jean Mensa, Chairperson of the Electoral Commission of Ghana, Mr. Elyse Ouedraogo, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission of Burkina Faso.
Also, M. Muhammad Sulaiman Isa, Deputy Ambassador of Nigeria to ECOWAS, Dr Cyriaque Agnekethom, ECOWAS Director of Peacekeeping and Regional Security, as well as a joint technical team from the ECOWAS and AU Commissions.
The joint delegation will hold working sessions with various stakeholders in the electoral process in Liberia, including the Government, National Elections Commission, the Judiciary, Parliament, Political Parties, Civil Society Organizations, Security Agencies and International Development Partners.
At the end of its engagements, the Mission will submit a comprehensive report that will inform the support of ECOWAS and AU to the 2023 electoral process in Liberia. Both organizations also provided similar support to the country during its last elections in 2017.