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AU deploys technical electoral support team in Somalia

Xinhua, September 24, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Africa Union has deployed a short-term technical electoral support team ahead of the electoral process in Somalia to back up the AU mission.

A statement from the AU Commission received in Mogadishu on Saturday said the team will also reinforce AMISOM's Political Unit and will be in Somalia until Nov. 5.

The two experts on the team, Hope Mary Nsangi from Uganda and Jespa Ajereboh Tichock from Cameroon, will be tasked with duties including collection of information on the implementation of the 2016 limited franchise electoral process agreed upon by Somali stakeholders.

"Their role will include contribution to the identification and documentation of lessons learnt from the electoral process toward the realization of the 2020 political road map," the statement said.

The team will also be tasked with liaison and coordination with other international partners supporting Somalia's electoral process (including the European Union, the Union Nations; the Arab League and Organization of Islamic Cooperation).

The deployment follows a Pre-election Assessment Mission conducted by the African Union Commission in July to identify the best form of technical assistance to support elections in Somalia.

The deployment of the AU Expert Team follows a decision at the African Union Peace and Security Council meeting held in Addis Ababa on Sept. 6 which requested the AUC to expedite the deployment of technical experts and provide other relevant forms of support to AMISOM in order to assist and reinforce the mission's capacity ahead of the elections.

AMISOM Political Affairs Officer Walters Samah said the AU mission is pleased to have received this direct support from the headquarters, noting that their deployment to Somalia is a further demonstration of AU's long term commitment to the country. Endit