The African Union Commission (AUC) and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) notifies of the arrival of its election observation mission (AUEOM) for the
14, 15 and 16 of July 2024 General Elections in the Republic of Rwanda. At the invitation of the Government of Rwanda and the National Electoral Commission (NEC) of Rwanda, the
Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, approved the deployment of the short-term AUEOM to assess and report on the conduct of these elections.
In addition, the African Union and COMESA have agreed to deploy a joint Election Observation Mission in Rwanda.
The joint African Union – COMESA EOM is led by H.E Jorge Carlos De Almeida Fonseca, Former President of the Republic of Cabo Verde and deputized by Rt. Hon. Ruhakana Rugunda, the Former Prime Minister of the Republic of Uganda and a Member of the COMESA Committee of Elders. It comprises of 48 short term observers drawn from ambassadors accredited to the African Union, officials of election management bodies, members of African civil society organisations, African election experts, gender and media experts, and representatives of youth organizations. The observers are drawn from 17 countries which include Benin, Cabo Verde, Comoros, Egypt, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Libya, Malawi, Mauritius, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The observers will be deployed to all four provinces including city of Kigali where they will observe the election day procedures including the opening of polls, voting, closing and the counting processes at the polling stations.
The joint African Union – COMESA EOM will base its assessment on the legal framework governing elections in the Republic of Rwanda and the OAU/AU Declaration on the Principles Governing Democratic Elections, standards and obligations stipulated in the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG), and the International Declaration of Principles (DoP) for International Election Observation among other normative frameworks.
Ahead of, during and after the elections, the joint Mission shall interact with the Government of the Republic of Rwanda, the National Electoral Commission, political parties and candidates, the media, civil society and faith-based organisations and some representatives of the international community. The Mission will also interact with other election observation missions deployed to observe the 2024 General Elections in Rwanda.
A preliminary statement containing initial findings and recommendations on the conduct of the elections will be released on 17 July 2024 at a press conference in Kigali, Rwanda. A
comprehensive final report will be released within two months from the date of declaration of final election results and will be posted on the AU Commission website.
The joint Mission’s Secretariat is located at the Radisson Blu by Convention Centre, Kigali, Rwanda and for more information about its activities, please contact: Tawanda Chimhini, AUEOM to Rwanda Coordinator I Political Affairs, Peace and Security Department | African Union Commission | Email: chimhinit@africa-union.org