We recently returned to the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa to participate in the partner meeting of the AU Democracy and Election Unit as part of ongoing collaboration with regional and international partners on electoral support for the upcoming year.
This meeting brought together key stakeholders, including International IDEA, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA), to review and define the programme of technical assistance that will be provided to the African Union Commission in 2026. Discussions focused on strengthening institutional capacities, peer learning among electoral management bodies, and preparing for flagship continental initiatives.
Under the Pro-Electoral Integrity project, conceived within the cooperation framework between ECES and the AU Commission’s Department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security (AUC-PAPS), ECES will continue to provide targeted support with funding from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This project aims to enhance credible, transparent and inclusive electoral processes across African Union Member States by building the resilience and institutional capacities of Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs) and their networks, in line with African Union electoral assistance priorities.
In 2026, we will support the 10th Continental Forum of African Electoral Management Bodies which will place particular emphasis on diaspora voting — a topic that has growing relevance as EMBs seek to address electoral participation challenges within transnational communities. The Continental Forum of EMBs is a longstanding platform for peer learning, knowledge exchange and policy dialogue among election authorities across Africa, and is a core vehicle through which the Department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security promotes good governance and participatory democracy on the continent.
In addition to the Forum, ECES will facilitate peer-learning missions for heads and commissioners of EMBs, including exchanges with Italian institutions responsible for the administration of elections. As a matter of fact, these last ones will host their African counterparts in Rome from 4 to 8 May. These visits aim to foster practical learning opportunities, enable comparative analysis of electoral practices, and support institutional dialogue on key aspects of electoral administration; a modality that has been central to ECES’ engagement with African EMBs over the past years.
Thanks to Italy’s support we are also proud to contribute to peer-learning deployments in Cabo Verde, Benin, Djibouti and Ethiopia (all countries holding elections in the first half of 2026).
All These activities build on the success of previous Continental Forums supported under the Pro-Electoral Integrity umbrella, which have addressed thematic priorities such as election management resilience and strategic communication among EMBs. Such forums have contributed to strengthening cooperation among electoral authorities and have helped develop continental-level strategies that respond to evolving electoral challenges.
