ECOWAS Election Observation Mission met with the different stakeholders on the eve of the 31 October 2020 Presidential Election in Cote d’Ivoire
31 Oct, 2020Abidjan, 30 October 2020.As part of efforts to better observe Cote d’Ivoire’s presidential election slated for 31 October 2020, the ECOWAS Election Observer Mission led by H.E Cheikh Hadjibou Soumaré, a former Senegalese Prime Minister, visited the Independent Electoral Commission on the morning of 30 October where it held a meeting with the members and the Chairman of the institution, H.E Ibrahime Coulibaly-Kuibiert.  Alongside General Francis Béhanzin, ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, and Ambassador Babacar Carlos Mbaye, ECOWAS Resident Representative in Cote d’Ivoire, the Head of the Electoral Mission subsequently visited the headquarters of candidate Pascal Affi N’Guessan of the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) where he was received by Mr. Issiaka Sangaré, Secretary General of the FPI, and then visited the independent candidate, Kouadio Konan Bertin, at his campaign headquarters in Abidjan. The delegation further participated in the meeting of Heads of Election Observation Missions for the Cote d’Ivoire presidential election of 31 October 2020. The meeting had in attendance the African Union Election Observation Mission, led by H.E. Dileita Mohamed Dileita, former Prime Minister of Djibouti, accompanied by Mrs Minata Samaté Cessoma, AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, the United Nations mission, led by H. E. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) mission led by Ambassador Désiré Nyaruhirira, Special Political and Diplomatic Advisor to the Secretary-General, as well as the Joint International Election Observation Mission comprising the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) and the Carter Center, led by Denis Kadima, Executive Director of EISA. Finally, the ECOWAS Election Observation Mission met in the evening with members of the Informal Group of Ambassadors (P5 and others), the African Union, the European Union and ECOWAS Ambassadors. The purpose of this series of meetings with stakeholders was to exchange views on the pre-electoral situation and the state of preparedness for the presidential election of Saturday 31 October 2020, to ensure the elections are conducted in an atmosphere of peace and calm and national cohesion. |
