African Union Guidelines for Elections During COVID-19 and Other Public Health Emergencies, October 2020, Addis Ababa Ethiopia

Abstract

This Guide carves a new complementary niche within existing African Union normative and policy frameworks for democratic elections such as the 2000 Constitutive Act of the AU, the 2007 African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, the 2002 OAU/AU Declaration on the Principles Governing Democratic Elections in Africa, the 1981 African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, among others. It constitutes a continental framework for guaranteeing the holding of democratic, credible and peaceful election while at the same time mitigating the impact of COVID-19 and PHEs in Africa. In particular, the Guide offers strategies for Member States of the African Union (AU), EMBs, civil society organisations, domestic and international observer groups, election experts, think tanks, health institutions as well as political parties on how best to navigate the complex challenges posed by COVID-19 and other public health emergencies, with a view to ensuring protection of both the health of citizens and integrity and democratic quality of elections.