Observers from member states of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) have kicked off their mission ahead of the August 4 presidential election.

At the launch of their activities in Kigali yesterday, the Head of Mission, Bishop Mary Nkosi, said the mission is in line with the bloc’s principles.

Rwanda is a partner state of the 19-state body.

"One of our fundamental principles, which is enshrined in the COMESA Treaty, is promotion and sustenance of a democratic system of governance among the members states. Our missions are, therefore, organised with the objectives of supporting the consolidation of democracy in member states,” Nkosi said.

The mission will observe the process running up to Election Day, including pre-voting activities, voting, vote counting and the release of results.

"We will dispatch observer teams to all the five provinces of Rwanda and later issue a preliminary statement of our findings before releasing a comprehensive report which will be shared with stakeholders,” she said.

"Furthermore, as is our practice, the mission will consult electoral stakeholders, including political parties, security, the electoral commission, civil society and the media, among others,” she said.

The team will be guided by national legal framework and relevant international and regional instructions, including COMESA guidelines on election observation.

"To achieve this, our observers will undergo an intensive training which will not only guide them on the legal frameworks of Rwanda but will also provide them with the necessary election observation skills and tools,” Nkosi said.

The Head of COMESA’s Peace, Security and Democracy Programme, Elizabeth Mutunga, said they were impressed with the peace and security that have characterised the campaigning period.

"What other election observer teams on the ground have been saying is that two of our fundamental principles, which is peace and security, have been observed during the campaigns and that is commendable,” she said.

COMESA Election Observer Teams have been observing elections in member states over the last 10 years.

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