Electoral Commisson engages observers from Arid and CDWS in continued training sessions |24 May 2025

As part of its ongoing training programme, the Electoral Commission Seychelles (ECS) on Thursday met with another key stakeholder group – observers from the Association for Rights, Information and Democracy (Arid) and Citizens for Democratic Watch Seychelles (CDWS).

Building on previous sessions, the training focused on critical elements of the electoral process, including electoral preparedness, the electoral system, voter registration, and the nomination process.

Offences related to elections were also addressed and participants agreed to review the code of conduct for observers so that it can be discussed at a later stage.

The workshop featured interactive discussions, with participants asking pertinent questions, offering feedback, and seeking clarifications on key areas of the electoral framework.

Speaking at the close of the session, the Chief Electoral Officer, Manuella Amesbury of the Seychelles Electoral Commission, stated, “We are encouraged by the level of engagement and commitment shown by our observer partners. Their input is vital to ensuring a transparent and inclusive electoral process.”

The Commission also expressed satisfaction with the strong turnout and meaningful contributions from attendees. “These sessions strengthen mutual understanding and reinforce the importance of collaboration in safeguarding the integrity of our elections,” said CEO Amesbury.

The Commission thanked all the representatives from local observers’ group and looks forward to engaging with them in other sessions as we countdown to the Seychelles 2025 elections.

Text and photos contributed