20
The international donor community provided funding to Interpeace, as it had in previous
elections, to take the lead in providing technical assistance to the National Electoral
Commission in advance of the 2010 presidential election, which included the provision of
technical support to the biometric voter registration process. Interpeace’s local partner, the
Academy for Peace and Development, also provided assistance to the National Electoral
Commission, including “advice to the National Electoral Commission regarding the resolution
of disputes related to voter registration and the electoral process, the development of a voter
education handbook, monitoring of the voter registration and polling process and serving as a
member in the civil society advisory group established by the National Electoral
Commission.”
34
Interpeace also hosted a training and discussion with Somaliland media which
led to the adoption of a media code of conduct on April 25, 2010.
35
Through funding from USAID, IRI trained political party agents and domestic observers to
monitor the 2008 voter registration exercise and hosted televised discussions on the Somaliland
voter registration process to help citizens better understand the process and registration
timelines. Further, IRI provided capacity building support to political parties in advance of the
election on their roles and responsibilities in electoral processes and implementing election
campaigns. Finally, IRI trained more than 5,000 political party agents in the days prior to
Election Day.
36
IRI’s party agent trainings were supplemented with the development of a party
agent manual and video (filmed and produced in partnership with the Academy for Peace and
Development’s audio visual unit).
In 2008, at the invitation of the National Electoral Commission and with support from the
European Commission, the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue provided technical advice to the
National Electoral Commission and political parties “on methods for resolving electoral
disputes… [and drew] on its mediation experience to contribute to the development of a system
of Electoral Dispute Resolution for the Somaliland elections.”
37
Further, the Centre for
Humanitarian Dialogue “produced guidelines for a code of conduct for political parties during
the elections and set up a political party liaison committee.”
38
Together with the Electoral
Institute of Southern Africa, the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue also implemented an
electoral mediation project whereby 600 respected members of local communities were trained
and deployed as local mediators “to be available across the country on Election Day to intervene
in any conflicts that occurred outside or inside polling stations.”
39
As was the case in 2005, the international donor community supported numerous election
observation missions of the June 26, 2010 presidential poll. Progressio, the Development
34
A Vote for Peace II: A Report on the 2010 Somaliland Presidential Election Process
. Rep. Hargeisa: Academy
for Peace and Development/Interpeace, 2012. Print, p. 43.
35
Making Peacebuilding Inclusive: Interpeace Annual Report 2010
. Rep. Geneva: Interpeace, 2011. Print, p. 48-
49.
36
The National Electoral Commission financially supported the deployment of political party agents on Election
Day.
37
"Our Work in Somaliland."
Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue
. N.p., n.d. Web. July 2013.
/>.
38
Ibid
39
Walls, Michael, and Steve Kibble.
Somaliland Change and Continuity: Report by International Election
Observers on the June 2010 Presidential Elections in Somaliland
. Rep. London: Progressio, 2011. Print.
