What We Do.
Democratic
Elections
Elections on the African continent have evolved considerably over the course of the last 30 years. Elections have grown from being characterised by one-party systems to being characterised by multiparty systems.
What We Do.
Democratic
Elections
Elections on the African continent have evolved considerably over the course of the last 30 years. Elections have grown from being characterised by one-party systems to being characterised by multiparty systems.
The context within which elections are taking place is transforming rapidly and emerging technologies provide new opportunities for stakeholders in the democratic landscape, but they also present a new array of democratic and human rights challenges. Strong protections for democratic freedoms are necessary to ensure that the new technologies will not be used by oppressive regimes to undo democratic gains.
The Elections and Political Processes (EPP) programme at EISA focuses on supporting regional, sub-regional and national stakeholders to foster inclusive, peaceful, and credible elections.
EISA provides support to inter-governmental bodies, civil society and electoral commissions through election assessment and electoral assistance initiatives.
Apart from conducting its own election observation missions, EISA works on election observation with organisations such as the African Union, African Regional Economic Communities, as well as on citizen observation, political party poll watching, and electoral reform on the national level.
Elections and Political Processes Projects
Africa Democracy Strengthening Programme
Through the Africa Democracy Strengthening (ADS) Programme EISA works towards enhancing good governance at the sub-regional level – specifically, providing support to Regional Economic Communities (RECs). The ADS project interventions complement and augment EISA’s work with the African Union and other stakeholders at the regional level.
RECs are the engines which drive democratic consolidation in their respective regions. By supporting the implementation of REC programmes and interventions through technical support, targeted activities and institutional engagement, EISA contributes to the broader democratic consolidation efforts in Africa.
The overall objective of the ADS Project is to contribute to credible electoral and democratic political processes in Africa, with greater citizen inclusion and participation at the regional, sub-regional and national level.
The specific objectives of the project relating to sub-regional governance and elections include supporting:
- AU and RECs to produce outputs and adopt best practices that enhance democratic processes in Africa.
- Key stakeholders to apply and implement lessons which advance trust in electoral processes and systems.
The ADS approach is to promote innovation, cooperation, knowledge management and partnerships towards strengthening and deepening democratic governance and credible elections in Africa.
Networks and Partners
Strengthening Pan-African Capacities for Electoral Observation and Assistance (SPEC)
The Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) and International Idea are implementing a 36-month European Union-funded project, titled – Strengthening Pan-African Capacities for Electoral Observation and Assistance (SPEC).
The SPEC project was designed drawing on lessons learnt by International IDEA and EISA from over a decade of providing support to the AU and Regional Economic Communities (RECs) in electoral assistance and election observation. International IDEA and EISA will work together and in a complementary manner in the delivery of the objectives of this project.
The project will work primarily with the following boundary partners: The Department of Political Affairs, Peace, and Security (DPAPS) of the African Union Commission (AUC); The electoral support units or divisions of Regional Economic Communities (RECs) including the East Africa Community (EAC), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), Southern African Development Community (SADC), continental and regional networks and associations of Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs), and selected EMBs at national level.
The overall objective of this project is to contribute to improved transparency and credibility of elections in Africa whilst contributing towards progress in the achievement of SDG 16.6 at the global level.
The specific objective(s) are to suppport:
- Continental, regional and national authorities to harmonise their approaches to electoral observation and demonstrate strengthened institutional capacities in electoral observation.
- Continental, regional, and national authorities to demonstrate strengthened institutional capacities in electoral assistance provision in Africa.
The implementation approach of the SPEC project is to deliver capacity building initiatives through advisory services, technical assistance, training, peer learning, mentoring, development of knowledge products and development of digital tools.
Networks and Partners
The Enhancing the Legitimacy, Integrity, and Transparency of Elections (ELITE) Project
The Enhancing the Legitimacy, Integrity, and Transparency of Elections (ELITE) Project began in 2018 and is currently in its third phase. The ELITE Project is funded by the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) under its African Union Support Project (AUSP). The objective of the ELITE III project is to contribute towards enhanced electoral integrity and the entrenchment of democratic norms in Africa.
The specific objectives of the ELITE project include:
- AUEOMs have greater impact at the national level and EMBs are strengthened to conduct more credible elections; and
- the AU’s capacity to undertake longer term election assessments and influence reforms is improved.
The implementation approach of the ELITE project is to provide technical assistance to the AUC’s election observation and assessment work. This spans deployment of EISA technical experts to AUEOMs and the PAPS department’s core staff, advisory support to the AUC’s electoral assistance initiatives, and development and refinement of AUC’s methodologies and guidelines that frame the unit’s election observation and electoral assistance work.
Whilst the AUC is the primary beneficiary of the ELITE III project, other indirect beneficiaries include AU institutions such as the AU Peace and Security Council as well as national institutions specifically Election Management Bodies (EMBs).
Through the implementation of the ELITE III project, EISA, alongside other actors, will contribute towards the achievement of the third aspiration of the AU Agenda 2063 and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 related to peace, justice, and strong institutions.
Networks and Partners
Elections Support
Our Approach
There are many phases to the electoral process: in an election, for example, these include:
- the design and drafting of legislation
- the recruitment and training of electoral staff
- electoral planning
- voter registration
- the registration of political parties
- the nomination of parties and candidates
- the electoral campaign
- polling
- counting
- the tabulation of results
- the declaration of results
- the resolution of electoral disputes
- reporting
- auditing and archiving
- electoral reforms.
After the end of one electoral process, it is desirable for work on the next to begin: the whole process can be described as the electoral cycle.
EISA works across Africa, in selected countries, and with selected institutions and bodies. At the continental level, EISA is a technical partner to the African Union (AU) in its electoral assistance support and assessment missions to Member States.
At the national level, EISA works with different national electoral stakeholders such as Electoral Management Bodies, civil society organisations, national parliaments or assemblies and political parties. Working at national level enables EISA to draw lessons that remain useful for its engagements with the AU, RECs and its own regional and sub-regional programmes.
Elections Observation
Missions
EISA’s Election Observation Missions bring representatives of civil society organisations, election management bodies, political parties, academic institutions, and the media from African countries together to observe elections.
These missions have proven very useful as they have allowed election stakeholders across the region to remain involved in election work during the period in-between elections as well as giving the participants a comparative perspective on electoral processes and models. This helps them to build their knowledge and hence gain the required confidence to engage in reform initiatives in their own countries.
Elections Observation
Innovation & Technologies
