ECOWAS RALLIES INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS TO SAFEGUARD GUINEA-BISSAU POLLS.
By Raymond Enoch
The ECOWAS Election Observation Mission (EOM) has convened a rare high-level strategy session with leading international observer groups in Bissau ahead of Guinea-Bissau’s crucial general elections, in a move billed as “preventive diplomacy in action.”
At the briefing, ECOWAS joined forces with the African Union, the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), G7+ and ROJAE-CPLP, bringing together some of the most experienced voices in African diplomacy and election observation to harmonise positions before voters go to the polls.
The coordination meeting was led by former Nigerian President, H.E. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, Chief of the ECOWAS Observation Mission, and AU High Representative, H.E. Mohamed Ibn Chambas. The Heads of Mission reviewed Guinea-Bissau’s institutional readiness, assessed the national electoral landscape and agreed on a joint framework for monitoring tomorrow’s vote.
According to participants, the exchange underscored a shared commitment to safeguarding peace and stability, strengthening democratic institutions, promoting transparency and accountability, and ensuring that the electoral outcome genuinely reflects the will of the people.
With ECOWAS long-, medium- and short-term observers already deployed across Guinea-Bissau, the Mission used the forum to reaffirm its solidarity with citizens at what it described as a decisive moment in the country’s democratic journey.
Officials stressed that the coordinated presence of regional and international observers is designed to build confidence in the process, deter violence, and provide an independent assessment of the credibility of the polls.
“This is preventive diplomacy in action. This is regional integration at work. This is ECOWAS, standing with West Africans,” an official of the Mission said, signalling the bloc’s resolve to defend democratic norms and electoral integrity in the sub-region.
