The Ministry of Interior in partnership with the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding has launched electoral violence monitoring, analysis, and mitigation projects, which aimed at support inclusive and sustainable dispute resolution architecture towards prevention and mitigation of political and/or election-related violence in advance to national elections, 2021/2022.
It also aimed to help at strengthening multi-stakeholders’ response to election violence in the country and to enhance response mechanisms for electoral dispute management and resolution in West Africa focusing on seven countries including The Gambia.
Representing the Minister of Interior, Deputy Permanent Secretary Fanta B. Samateh Manneh said: “these projects aim to prevent reoccurrence of negative impacts of the past elections (2016/2017), such as violent political tensions undermining the peace and stability in the country.”
She said the projects would complement government’s efforts in strengthening the peace and security of the country; more especially during 2021/2022 national elections.
She pointed out the role of government in ensuring this country experiences a fair, inclusive and peaceful elections, and the consolidation of its democracy.
She also emphasized the role of Civil Society Organizations, political parties, and other private organizations in strengthening the prevention and mitigation mechanisms on election-related violence, and thanked WANEP, EU, and GIZ for their collaboration and partnerships, which she noted, resulted to the successful launching of the two projects.
The European Union Ambassador to The Gambia, Corrado Pampalon, informed that in the next few months, the EMAM project will train electoral monitors for deployment across the country, to monitor electoral processes in advance to the upcoming national elections, December 4, 2021.
Alieu Momarr Njie, Chairman of the Independent Electorate Commission, said that election starts with voting and therefore one must have a voter ID to be able to vote.
He urged all eligible Gambians to register to vote, emphasizing that The Gambia has the most free and fair electoral system in the world and called on the public to exercise tolerance to avoid violence and dispute, whilst assuring the people that the IEC will conduct free and fair elections in the forthcoming 2021 national elections.
The two projects are being coordinated by the Ministry of Interior in partnership with the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP), and with the support of Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), and ECOWAS Peace and Security Architecture (PSAO).
