Mozambique: President announces creation of advisory group to analyse feasibility of district elections

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Mozambique: President announces creation of advisory group to analyse feasibility of district elections

7:24 CAT | 21 Dec 2022

Image: Miramar

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi has announced the creation of a consultative group to “assess the pertinence” of the district elections scheduled for 2024.

“In order to better prepare the district elections, we will create, at the beginning of next year, an election advisory group, involving all the sensitivities of society,” the Mozambican head of state said in his annual speech on the State of the Nation at the Assembly of Republic in Maputo on Tuesday.

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The introduction of district elections from 2024 is part of the Peace and National Reconciliation Agreement signed in August 2019 between the government of the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo) and the Mozambican National Resistance (Renamo), the country’s main opposition party, which maintains an ‘armed wing’ currently subject to the Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) process.

Doubts about the viability of the district elections were raised by the president himself in the middle of this year, at a time when the National Election Commission (CNE) was warning of budget limitations regarding Mozambique’s next electoral cycle.

President Nyusi said the advisory group would have the mission of promoting “reasoned reflection” on the pertinence of the district elections scheduled for 2024, its results to be submitted to parliament for a final decision.

“We intend to develop a solid and sustainable democracy, capable of uniting us in what is essential and avoiding friction in marginal matters,” Nyusi stressed.

In 2023, Mozambique begins a new electoral cycle, with the holding of municipal elections, followed by general elections scheduled for 2024 (presidential, legislative, provincial and, possibly, district).

According to information released by the National Election Commission (CNE) in June this year, Mozambique needed around €287 million to pay for the next electoral cycle.

Source: Lusa