Representatives of 25 Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in Ghana and the media, have participated in a Two-Day Experience Sharing Workshop convened by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission to deliberate on promoting participatory democracy and inclusive electioneering process in Ghana.
The meeting recalled the relevant provisions of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana, which guarantees freedom of expression, freedom of association, and effective citizen participation in the electoral processes in Ghana, recognizing the relevant provisions of the 2001 ECOWAS Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, the 2008 ECOWAS Conflict Prevention Framework, and other international instruments, which promote the involvement of CSOs in deepening the electoral processes, particularly to engage, sensitize, and enlighten the public on the need for credible polls devoid of all acts of violence.
A communique issued at the end of the 2 day meeting resolved as follows, that’s CSO’s shall continue to diligently monitor all aspects of the electoral processes across the country to ensure that the processes are undertaken according to established national laws and regulations and international best practices on electioneering processes;
Again the meeting resolved to reinforce efforts geared towards raising awareness and understanding of the electorate through robust voter education and civic education to enhance participation and enable citizens to make informed choices in the polls as we all as re enforcing CSO and Media collaboration to ensure that media practitioners embrace decent communication and further robust civic education, which emphasizes citizen sovereignty and enhances participation in the electoral processes.
The meeting further resolved to mobilize and coordinate our efforts to engage the National Media Commission and the Ghana Journalists Association to take appropriate measures in addressing and managing hate speech, mis/disinformation, vitriolic and inciting statements around the electoral process before, during, and after the 7 December 2024 general elections.
Participants prevailed on political actors to respect and promote responsible communication in the dissemination of their electoral campaign messages in the period leading to the polls, emphasizing on the need for stronger coordination and synergy on CSO efforts and initiatives to support credible and peaceful electoral processes.
The CSOs were encouraged to leverage the operationalization of situation rooms focusing on various thematic aspects of the electoral process to optimize CSOs’ role in promoting inclusive and peaceful elections.
The CSO’s also urged the EC to provide more opportunities and platforms for engagement to deepen understanding of the electoral process and safeguard electoral transparency and integrity to enhance the confidence and trust of all stakeholders in the electoral process, while recommending CSOs to mobilize themselves into a common front to strengthen their engagement with the National Election Security Taskforce and the Judiciary to enhance electoral security and electoral justice before, during, and after the elections.
Underscoring the need for demilitarization of the electoral process and deepening democratic control/role of the security services in safeguarding electoral security, the CSO’s called on the National Elections Security Taskforce, led by the Ghana Police Service (GPS), to promote a human rights-based approach in policing the electoral process.
The CSO’s expressed concern over violence against women in politics in Ghana and demanded the sanctioning of perpetrators. To this end, CSOs resolved to facilitate training on digital literacy for women candidates, and creation of an experience-sharing platform for women in politics to enhance their safety and dignity in the digital space and protect effective participation of women in the electoral processes.
The meeting also urged CSOs to prioritize the integration of youths in all election-related initiatives especially in the promotion of digital rights and sensitization on misinformation and disinformation before, during, and after the elections, while calling on the Electoral Commission, political parties and Independent Candidates to address issues of concern surrounding the electoral processes, using inclusive mechanisms such as the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC).
CSO’s appealed to the National House of Chiefs to strengthen the role of traditional authorities in supporting a peaceful electoral process and to prevail on political actors and the Electoral Commission to deepen confidence of all actors in the electoral process; promote social cohesion; and douse tension in the period leading to and after the polls.
Again the CSO’s urged the ECOWAS Commission and the African Union Commission to urgently deploy their Good Offices to engage major political and electoral stakeholders on emerging issues around the electoral process to foster and sustain confidence and trust building in the electoral process.
The meeting urged the ECOWAS Commission to mobilize additional resources towards supporting the replication of engagements and training of political stakeholders, the Media, and CSO actors at the regional and District levels to promote a peaceful and inclusive electoral process
The 25 Civil society groups and Media representatives expressed profound appreciation to the ECOWAS Commission for organizing the Experience-Sharing Workshop, which has enhanced the capacity of CSOs to contribute towards the promotion of peaceful, participatory, and inclusive elections in Ghana.
