Former Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta will be leading the African Union Election
Observation Mission (AUEOM) in the upcoming general election in South Africa.
On April this year, AUC chairperson Moussa Faki appointed Kenyatta to lead the observer group
in the coming general elections in South Africa, which is set to take place on 29th May, 2024 with
27 million voters expected to cast on their votes.
The mission also comprises of 60 short term observers (STOs) drawn from ambassadors
accredited to the Africa Union, officials of election management bodies, members of African
civil society organisations, African election experts, human right specialist, Gender and media
experts and representatives of the youth organisations.
These delegated have been drawn from 24 countries which include Benin, Angola, Botswana,
Burundi, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia. Eswatini, Gambia, Ghana,
Kenya, Lesotho, Mauritius, Morocco, Namibia, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Sudan, Togo,
Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe
The Primary mandate of the team is assessing the quality of the poll, that is, the degree in which
the election conduction meets the regional, continental and international standards for democratic
elections, and to offer recommendation for improvement of future elections based on findings.
“The AUEOM will engage with several stakeholders and observe the final preparation and
polling process. Based on the findings, the AUEOM will issue its preliminary statement after
election day,” the AU stated in a press.
The mission will release its preliminary findings and recommendations on the conduct of the
elections on 31st May 2024 in a press conference in Johannesburg, South Africa and a final report
to realised within two months from date of announcement of final election results.
