By M.A. Egge
The National Electoral Commission (NEC) of the Republic of Somaliland officially held its first meeting of introduction and information exchange with the National Party Steering Committee (Taskforce) recently appointed by the three National Parties of Kaah, Kulmiye, and Waddani.
The orientation meeting focused on strengthening the cooperation between the two parties and making significant progress in the registration and preparation activities for the upcoming elections.
During the meeting, the NEC provided a comprehensive report on the important tasks it has undertaken over the past five months, which are essential for improving the electoral system and enhancing the operational capacity of the institution.
The tasks included:
- A meeting to review lessons learned from the presidential and national party elections in the Somaliland Legislative Assembly.
- A working trip by the National Electoral Commission to Kenya, where meetings were held with donors and ambassadors of nations supporting Somaliland’s electoral affairs to discuss electoral issues.
- Preparation of the National Electoral Commission’s Strategic Plan for the next five years, and finalization of the policies and procedures of the National Electoral Commission Office.
- An audit of the electoral registration system was conducted, using the international firm KPMG, one of the top five auditing firms in the world. The KPMG report provided an in-depth assessment of the Registration System, which will greatly contribute to the development and transparency of the electoral register.
The National Electoral Commission of Somaliland noted that the meeting is “the beginning of a close cooperation between the two sides on the registration system and the preparation of free, fair, and transparent elections”.