New Commissioners’ Orientation (NCO) Programme – Southern Africa

This event is funded by the European Union through the Strengthening Pan-African Capacities for Electoral Observation and Assistance (SPEC) project.

Professional electoral administrators are key to delivering well-organized, credible, and genuine elections. Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs) perform best when their leadership thoroughly understands the mechanics, principles and good practices in electoral administration. In Africa, EMBs are working to bring the capacities of commissioners and senior staff to the desired level – a difficulty compounded by fixed-term appointments and other challenges that commissions face to discharge their mandate. Despite solid credentials in their previous positions, newly appointed commissioners often require knowledge of key issues in the fields of democracy and electoral administration.

This Southern Africa regional NCO Programme will be officially inaugurated by Hon. Dr. Mumba Malila, SC, Chief Justice of the Republic of Zambia and will brings together newly appointed electoral commissioners from Botswana, Eswatini, Malawi, Namibia, Seychelles, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zanzibar.  The training aims to support policymakers within these EMBs in their mandate to deliver transparent, credible, and peaceful elections.

The objectives of the NCO are to: 
•    Introduce the newly appointed commissioners to the concepts, guiding principles, good practices, and emerging trends in electoral management.
•    Equip newly appointed electoral commissioners with knowledge and skills to undertake their new responsibilities with integrity,    professionalism, transparency, and accountability.
•    Provide a platform for peer learning and networking among ECF-SADC member EMBs.

With a focus on improving electoral administration, the sessions will cover key topics, including electoral management, operations, leadership, risk management, digitalization, promoting gender issues in elections, and using technology in elections. The orientation will also address emerging challenges, such as the impact of social media and artificial intelligence on electoral processes. 

This event builds on past NCO sessions and continues to support the strengthening of democratic processes in the region. We look forward to a productive and impactful programme.

Contacts

• Mawusi Dumenu, International IDEA (m.dumenu@idea.int)
• Hilda Modisane, ECF-SADC (hmodisane@ecfsadc.org)
• Patricia Luhanga, Electoral Commission of Zambia (patricia.luhanga@elections.org.zm)