Dakar, Senegal — Local, legislative, and presidential elections scheduled in 2022 and 2024 present a unique opportunity for Senegal to consolidate its democracy by bolstering citizen confidence and participation in the electoral process.
The USAID-funded “Senegal Elections Support” program will help civil society organizations facilitate dialogue, monitor elections,conduct civic and voter education, and reinforce specific aspects of election administration to promote a fair and credible democratic process.
With funding from the United States Government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening (CEPPS), and its member organizations the National Democratic Institute (NDI), the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), and the International Republican Institute (IRI), will provide support to the Senegalese people through the upcoming electoral cycle.
NDI will partner with the Collective of Civil Society Organizations for Elections (le Collectif des Organisations de la Société Civile pour les Élections, COSCE) to foster electoral reform dialogue, observe all facets of the electoral process and support greater inclusion of marginalized populations.
“With this program, we can reinforce the added value of civil society actions for participatory, inclusive, transparent and peaceful elections,” notes Valdiodio Ndiaye, COSCE’s Secretary General. “COSCE looks forward to renewing its partnership with NDI, which was last active during the 2012 election cycle.”
USAID’s support to IFES, through CEPPS, will build the capacity, inclusiveness, and independence of Senegal’s electoral institutions, namely the General Directorate for Elections under the Ministry of Interior (Direction Générale des Élections, DGE) and the Autonomous National Electoral Commission (Commission électorale nationale autonome, CENA). “This project will be guided by the core values of sustainability and inclusion, as we provide targeted support to Senegal’s election management bodies to carry out their respective mandates while building public trust in the integrity of the electoral process,” said Adele Ravidá, IFES Senior Elections Systems Advisor. “Polling will provide us with important data on citizens’ views and priorities that will guide our activities and strengthen our work to advance consensus-driven electoral reform in Senegal,” said Gregory Kearns, IRI’s Regional Director for Africa.
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