23 Aug 2016

President Lt Gen. Dr Seretse Khama Ian Khama says it is pleasing to see the Electoral Commissions Forum of SADC Countries (ECF-SADC) getting recognition and financial support from governments as it plays a critical role of continuous improvement of management of elections in the region.

The President, who was officially opening the 18^th ECF-SADC annual general meeting in Gaborone yesterday, said the forum had facilitated mutual electoral operations among SADC countries that led to general political stability in the region. 

He also said ECF-SADC had helped to organise electoral assistance from cooperation partners such as a programme on the Management of Democratic Elections in Africa (MDEA) which was sponsored by USAID.

“I wish to recognise and acknowledge the forum's tireless and passionate efforts of encouraging the development and promotion of a democratic culture. In recognising the importance of regional partnerships among electoral commissions of SADC, the government of Botswana apart from hosting the secretariat of the forum, signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the forum for strengthening collaboration on elections matters,”he  said, adding that his administration will continue supporting the local Independent Electoral Commission to continue working with ECF-SADC.  

He further advised politicians in the region to adhere to election processes and avoid manipulating elections which usually caused election related conflicts. On the other hand, he said members of Electoral Management Bodies (EMBS) should  conduct elections with unquestionable integrity.

One of the objectives of ECF-SADC is to encourage the development and promotion of a democratic culture and an environment conducive to the holding of free, fair and credible elections. Secondly, the Forum encourages the development of electoral laws that adhere to regionally and internationally accepted principles of election management.

He said these objectives demonstrated the importance of EMBs in enhancing democracy in the region. 

“I am pleased to note that SADC now boasts of such functional electoral management authorities in all member states,” he  said.

Held under the theme 'Institutionalizing Electoral Performance Audits for Enhanced Integrity', the three day meeting was attended by chairpersons of independent electoral commissions and heads of diplomatic missions.

Chairperson of ECF-SADC, Justice Rita Makarau said the process of auditing electoral performance would lead to scrutiny that would help to show whether elections were credible.

Chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission in Botswana, Justice Abednego Tafa hoped that the meeting would help to improve electoral processes and further enhance democracy in the region. Ends