The Carter Centre said on Friday that it launched an international election observation mission in Ghana this week for the country’s 7 December vote with the deployment of four teams of observers to four regions.
Observers would focus on the limited voter registration exercise which begins on 31 July and the pre-election political environment as part of the Centre’s on-going international election observation programme, a statement from the Centre said.
The Ghana observation mission would be coordinated by the Carter Centre’s Country Director, Dr. Keith Jennings, who has been in Ghana since May.
The Centre’s international observers are drawn from eight countries – Argentina, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Nigeria, Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States and Zimbabwe.
Collectively, the Centre’s observers have previously participated in international observation missions to more than 25 other countries in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean.
The statement said in September, The Carter Centre was planning to deploy a delegation of long-term mission observers during Ghana’s campaign period.
It said they would remain in the country for several months and be joined by a 5 0-person short-term delegation closer to the 7 December elections.
“The Carter Centre looks forward to showing international interest in and support for Ghana’s electoral process and the holding of transparent and credible elect ions that meet international standards and can be accepted by all political contestants at this critical time for democratic elections in Africa,” said Dr. Jennings.
“We believe that our presence and our reporting on the country’s electoral process to the world will help to further consolidate the democratic process in Ghana . ”
PANAPRESS
