Burkina Faso Electoral Process Support Project (2019-2021)

The results that have been achieved even if the country has experienced two coup d'etat during the year, both expected and unexpected by the programme are: 1. Legal offices - A new experience A consultation with the CENI and the judiciary (65 judges from the public prosecutor's office) allowed for the mobilization of 557 members of the judiciary (judges, court clerks, prison security guards, interpreters) for the establishment of judicial duty stations in 25 jurisdictions and 3 courts of appeal. The operationalization of this mechanism, called legal watch, is a novelty that has helped strengthen the rule of law during the critical phase of voting and the compilation of results. These judicial offices facilitated the investigation and punishment of allegedly reprehensible acts with speed and respect for the Electoral Code by initiating proceedings. 2. Early alert system - Synergy of stakeholders During the November 2020 coupled elections, several actors are engaged in proactive monitoring to regulate the occurrence of any pre-election, election or even post-election conflict. These include the Ministry of Home Affairs and Security, the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH), the Convention of Civil Society Organizations for Domestic Observation of Elections (CODEL), the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP), the Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace of Burkina Faso (CJP-Burkina), the Superior Council of Communication and the Technical Committee for Securing Elections. In order to ensure synergies among the stakeholders, the project facilitated the establishment of an operational framework that allowed for the implementation of activities in a complementary approach. 3. Production of election forms One of the lessons learned from the combined elections of 2020 is the delicate management of electoral materials, particularly sensitive electoral forms (ballots, minutes of operations and counting, results sheets, etc.). A system of pre-identification of printers or pre-qualification of national printing companies is in place. Indeed, during the thematic workshop on "Database and Logistics", the project shared with the main stakeholders, in particular the CENI and the Ministry of Finance, a "Guide for Monitoring the Production and Packaging of Sensitive Printed Materials". This protocol is designed to improve the practical arrangements implemented in the production chain for single ballots and other sensitive printed materials. The protocol is a working tool for those responsible for the physical execution of these tasks. It also serves as a guide for control and monitoring personnel in the print production, packaging and deployment chain. It is also a planning tool for the printing phases of sensitive electoral documents. Finally, the pre-identification of printers will allow for substantial economies of scale. 4. Electoral integrity and anti-corruption The November 2020 elections (presidential and legislative) led to the discovery of corrupt electoral practices that compromised the sincerity and integrity of the electoral process. These acts of corruption were present throughout the election campaign. As an example, REN-LAC, a civil society organization, is committed to monitoring elections in order to contribute to the struggle against electoral fraud and corruption. The objective of REN LAC was to document the different aspects of electoral corruption. At the end of this observation, 439 corrupt practices were detected, including 314 cases of direct observation and 125 cases of testimony. According to REN-LAC's Executive Secretary, these cases of corruption are most often the distribution of money to potential voters (43%), the distribution of fuel (16%), the distribution of T-shirts with or without the party's logo (14%), donations in nature (14%) and the use of State property for election campaign purposes (5%). Other acts of corruption observed were gifts to opinion leaders, transferring and transporting voters to register on a voter's list or to vote, and intimidation of voters (8%). Given the extent of the corruption phenomenon, the project is supporting an ASCE/LC CENI initiative to provide the electoral process with a strategic plan to fight electoral corruption. The document being developed is based on the guidelines resulting from consultations held in Koudougou from November 14 to 18, 2022 with other stakeholders in the electoral process (government, political parties, civil society). 5. Resilient organization of electoral consultations the conclusions of the regional seminar organized in Ouagadougou from December 7 to 9, 2022, with the participation of electoral administrations from the Sahel region and other countries of the continent in crisis, on the theme: "Electoral processes and security crisis in sub-Saharan Africa: resilience of election management bodies", showed that elections are a key factor in consolidating democracy. In a security context such as that of Burkina Faso, the organization of elections to provide the country with legitimate institutions remains unavoidable, not only regarding democratic values but also as one of the factors for resolving the crisis. To this end, the President of the Transition has made a commitment to return to normal constitutional order before the July 1, 2024, deadline. In his statement, relayed by the Minister of Home Affairs and Security, he declared that the electoral period, in a difficult security context, should serve to "relaunch our countries in the march of development" and reaffirmed the commitment of the Transitional Government "to do everything possible to return to a normal constitutional order.

The intended outcome to be achieved by the end of the intervention is that the 2020 and 2021 elections are recognized as free, transparent, credible and inclusive, in accordance with international best practices.  Obtaining this result involves the achievement of eight outputs, grouped into five components, as described below: Component 1: Support for capacity building and electoral operations:- Output 1.1: The CENI and its branches have the capacity to effectively manage the electoral process;- Output 1.2: The actors responsible for securing the electoral process have the necessary knowledge and equipment; Component 2: Support for communication, civic education and awareness-raising for greater citizen participation:- Output 2.1: Communication stakeholders have the necessary capacities for effective communication on the electoral process;- Output 2.2: The populations informed about the stakes and the course of the electoral process; Component 3: Support for the prevention and management of electoral conflicts:- Output 3.1: electoral dispute management bodies have the capacities necessary to manage electoral conflicts; Component 4: Support for participation of women and young people:- Output 4.1: stakeholders and the population are sensitive to the participation of women and young people in politics;- Output 4.2: Women candidates in elections have the capacity to participate effectively in the electoral campaign; Component 5: Support for post-electoral activities:- Output 5.1: Stakeholders in the electoral process with lessons learned for the next electoral cycles. The individuals or groups who are going to change their attitudes, relations or behaviour are: - The CENI and its branches will have more capacity to manage the electoral process; - The actors responsible for securing the electoral process will have the necessary knowledge and equipment. - The communication actors will have the necessary capacities for effective communication on the electoral process; - Electoral dispute management bodies will have necessary capacities to manage electoral conflict; - Burkinabè populations and stakeholders sensitive to women and young people participation in politic; - Women candidates have the capacity to participate effectively in elections; - All stakeholders in the electoral process have lessons learned for the next electoral cycles.  The 2020 and 2021 elections will be recognized as free, transparent, credible and inclusive, in accordance with international best practice on the assumption that the alert system significantly reduces electoral conflicts, the insecurity linked to terrorist attacks does not worsen further and the social climate will remain calm.