Brussels, 22/09/2015 (Agence Europe) - At the invitation of the Tanzanian authorities, the EU is to observe the general elections in Tanzania on 25 October. Judith Sargentini MEP (Greens/EFA, the Netherlands) has just been appointed by High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini to lead the EU election observation mission (EU EOM) that is currently being deployed.
Speaking on Tuesday 22 September, Mogherini said in a press release that these elections will be “credible, transparent and peaceful”, as previous elections have been, and that these elections “will contribute to further consolidate Tanzanian's democracy”. Sargentini said she hopes they will be “an example for the whole region”.
The core team of eight observers, which will coordinate the mission, has been up and running since 11 September. Long-term observers will come to give the core team a hand on 24 September, and 60 short-term observers will join them on 18 October, to be deployed throughout the country. A delegation of parliamentarians and diplomats will come to swell the ranks of the EU EOM the day of the elections. Presidential, parliamentary and local elections will take place in Tanzania and Zanzibar, the archipelago in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Tanzania. The EU has been monitoring the election preparations closely since May, sending experts to the ground. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)