The ECOWAS Conflict Prevention Framework and the decision of the Conference of Heads of State and Government to send pre-election missions in a timely manner to Member States holding elections underpin the latest move by the regional body.
The ECOWAS Commission will deploy a pre-election fact-finding mission to Côte d’Ivoire from 29 June to 5 July 2025, in accordance with the provisions of Article 12 of the ECOWAS Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, Article 53(C).
This mission will be led by Professor Theodore Holo, former president of the Constitutional Court of Benin. It consists of ten members, including Ambassador Abdel-Fatau Musa, Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security of the ECOWAS Commission, and Ms. Adjovi Yekpe, Ambassador of Benin to ECOWAS, representing the Committee of Permanent Representatives of ECOWAS Member States.
The mission will be assisted by electoral experts from the sub-region and a technical team from ECOWAS led by H.E. Fanta Cissé, ECOWAS Resident Representative in Côte d’Ivoire.
The programme for the pre-election mission to Côte d’Ivoire includes meetings with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Interior and Public Security, the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI), the High Authority for Audiovisual Communication (HACA), leaders of political parties from the presidential camp and the opposition, and civil society organisations.
ALSO READ: Niger gov calls for collaboration between private, public sectors to mitigate flood disasters
The various activities to be carried out during this mission will enable the Head of Mission and the experts to (i) collect all the legal texts governing the holding of the 2025 presidential election in the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire; (ii) meet with the electoral management body (EMB), the administration, the leaders of coalitions and political parties, civil society and all other stakeholders in the electoral process; (iii) collect all information relating to the conditions under which the presidential election will be held; collect all relevant information concerning the competing political coalitions and parties; (iv) gather any other information useful for a proper assessment of the political atmosphere; and finally (v) assess the state of preparations for the holding of the presidential election under proper conditions.
The information obtained by the ECOWAS pre-election mission at the end of its stay in Abidjan will be subject to objective analysis and will be recorded in a report accompanied by recommendations to the management of the ECOWAS Commission.
ALSO READ TOP STORIES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE