Accordingly, the project is to enhance voters’ confidence in the electoral processes results, to the extent warranted, and to mitigate electoral violence and tension through evidence based and responsive election observation reporting to the public.
Speaking at the launch of the project over the weekend, ECC Board Chairman, Cllr. Oscar Bloh said “the project will adopt a three-prone approach: The first approach is to increase citizens’ confidence in the electoral process and its outcome through the observation of the various components of the electoral cycle and releasing timely information to the public on the findings.
The second approach is to enhance stakeholders’ engagements which include establishing and maintaining strategic relationships with diverse stakeholders including NEC, political parties, security sector and the media.”
He said these engagements are intended to share information, collective problem-solving and to harness the efforts of all stakeholders to contribute to a free, fair and credible election.
“The third approach is electoral reforms advocacy. This will include consultations with stakeholders on reforms that need to take place based on their experience of participating in the 2023 elections as well as the outcomes of the ECC’s observation efforts”.
Meanwhile, Cllr. Bloh noted that the ECC will deploy 92 Long Term Observers (LTOs) which includes 19 County Coordinators and 73 electoral Districts Supervisors with 1,200 Short Term Observers during the October 2023 election day across the Country.
According to him, the project will achieve strategic objectives which include but not limited to: establishing the ECC Data Center with Apollo Database Management system that will allow observers to transmit real-time observation data through SMS using coded texts which will be collected and analyzed to produce updated reports.
He also said, they will focus on observing the Biometric Voters’ Registration Exercise and campaign activities to ensure that political parties and independent candidates are in compliance with the laws and regulations.
At the same time USAID Mission Director to Liberia, Mr. Jim Wright characterized their partnership as breaking new ground and the first of its kind USAID is partnering directly with a local organization to implement a project of such scale and scope in Liberia.
“This partnership is a product of USAID’s new localization initiative, this initiative recognizes that we need to intentionally integrate the invaluable insights of local partners into our work.
The development results we produce are therefore likely to be more effective, more resilient, and more equitable when local partners play a lead role in planning our programs, implementing projects, and evaluating progress”, USAID Mission Director emphasized.
Mr. Wright urged ECC to fully comply with the rules of their partnership because Congress holds them accountable for every U.S. taxpayer dollar they spend.
According to him, The 2023 October presidential and legislative elections which the ECC will be helping them observe represents a critical test for Liberian democracy as it’s the first time since the end of the civil war Liberia will be independently leading the entire election cycle-from voter registration to actual voting, and counting of ballots and Successful elections in October will help Liberia build on its hard won post-civil war democracy.
Going further, he said ECC will be playing a significant role as Election observation provides a valuable tool for improving the quality of elections, exposing problems that can be solved even while elections are ongoing, ensuring adherence to ground rules, deter wrongdoing, and builds public trust in the integrity of the electoral processes.
“ECC is very qualified to lead the implementation of our election observation project. Since its founding in 2010, the ECC has worked to promote democratic governance in Liberia and built a strong network among donors and civil society organizations. Among ECC’s strengths is its commitment to ensuring a fair electoral process and making objective, evidence-based judgments about the conduct of elections”, the USAID Mission Director to Liberia, Mr. Jim Wright asserted.
