A comprehensive 5-day training for 19 election magistrates will be conducted by the NEC Hearing Section in Buchanan city, Liberia from 11 to 15 February with the assistance of UNDP project “Support to the 2015-2018 Liberian Electoral Cycle.” The project is financially sustained by the United Nations Development Programme, the European Union, Ireland, Sweden and Canada with a fund of USD 16 million and partners with the National Elections Commission.
The training will strengthen the electoral dispute resolution mechanisms, one of the Achilles’ heel of electoral process as per 2017 General election experience and support further capacity building of the NEC magistrates in dispute resolution. The 2017 General elections produced important case law in a form of the Supreme Court decisions that will be used as guide for the practical exercises together with practice of moot court hearings and drafting decision. Complaint reporting system will be also tested.
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Support to the 2015-2018 Liberian Electoral Cycle project was established in order to strengthen the capacity of the National Election Commission (NEC) to successfully carry out electoral process within the 2015-2018 electoral cycle. Among other objectives, it introduced modern administrative systems and procedures, enhanced communications and public outreach, supported voter registration and election results management process. In addition, the project seeks to enhance the participation of women in the elections and in political activities, support civic and voter education and strengthen NEC’s capacity to engage with the stakeholders and resolve electoral disputes. The project is supported by the European Union (10.85 million USD), Sweden (2,757,039 USD), UNDP (1 million USD), Canada (749,625 USD) and Ireland (568,828 USD).