By Omeiza Ajayi

ABUJA: President Muhammadu Buhari has called on countries in the West African region to expand their democratic frontiers to allow for more inclusion of vulnerable groups in the society.

President Muhammadu Buhari

The president spoke Monday when he declared open the Symposium/Biennial General Assembly of the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions ECONEC in Abuja.

“It is significant to note that the 6th Biennial General Assembly of the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions (ECONEC) opens with a symposium on inclusivity. I am glad to note that among the speakers at this symposium are some of the youngest female members of parliament from different countries in our sub-region. It is equally noteworthy that persons with disabilities, among them a member of parliament, are also actively participating as speakers”, Buhari who was represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF, Boss Mustapha said.

He described the situation as a very encouraging sign of the region’s steady progress in ensuring that all segments of the society have a voice in the management of public affairs, especially through the democratic process.

“It is also an indication that in spite of the progress achieved so far, more needs to be done by Governments through legislation, by political parties through affirmative action in the nomination of candidates for election and by all stakeholders through unrelenting advocacy for greater inclusion of all segments of society in the democratic and electoral processes.

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“It is for this reason that before the last General Election in Nigeria, I assented to a constitutional amendment bill that reduced the age required of a candidate to contest for some elective offices. This followed the strong but peaceful advocacy by young men and women around the slogan of “Not-too-young-to-run” as the bill passed by the National Assembly was popularly called.

On his part, outgoing ECONEC Chairman and head of Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu recalled how ECONEC was formed in February 2008 in Guinea Conakry through the encouragement of ECOWAS.

“It was felt at the time that given the enormous challenges of organizing elections in our sub-region, there should be a forum for electoral commissions to collaborate with one another through peer learning and support”, he said.

Speaking on the achievements of the regional body, Yakubu said; “Since the election of the current Steering Committee at the 5th General Assembly in Cotonou, Benin Republic, in March 2017, ECONEC now has a permanent secretariat here in Abuja which makes coordination with the ECOWAS Commission easier, more so because the ECONEC Permanent Secretary is also Head of the Electoral Assistance Division of ECOWAS. On peer support, ECONEC undertook needs assessment, solidarity and mid-term review missions to eight (8) of the 15 members States.

“With support from OSIWA, experts were commissioned to undertake a major study on the worrisome cost of conducting elections in the sub-region focusing on two countries from each of the three linguistic blocks i.e. Anglophone (Nigeria and Liberia), Francophone (Benin Republic and Senegal) and Lusophone (Cape Verde and Guinea Bissau). The report was discussed and validated by member States at a high profile meeting here in Abuja in October last year. The English and French versions of the report will be presented shortly while we are working on the Portuguese translation. At the same time, ECONEC and ECF-SADC, with support from ECES, organised a major international conference on the opportunities and challenges of deploying technology for elections here in Abuja in April 2018 with a view to exploring ways of reducing cost and further enhancing transparency and credibility in elections. Similarly, a regional media training workshop on reporting of elections was held here in Abuja in October 2018 attended by 36 media professionals from the 15 members States of ECOWAS. On inclusivity, ECOWAS, in collaboration with ECONEC, sponsored a study on gender mainstreaming in the sub-region which was validated at a workshop held in Accra, Ghana, in May this year.

“A critical issue for the future of ECONEC is funding. While we appreciate the support of ECOWAS and the development partners, we agreed last year that each member country shall pay the sum of $5,000 per annum to support the activities of the Network. I am glad to report that many countries have fully paid their dues for two years. This is a very encouraging show of confidence in the management of the Network”, he added.

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