Former Mozambican prime minister Carlos Agostinho do Rosário will lead a 19-member observer mission from the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP) monitoring Sunday’s presidential election in Cabo Verde. The team arrived in the archipelago on Wednesday and will remain in the country for one week to follow and assess the electoral process.
According to a statement from the organisation, the mission includes diplomats nominated by member states, as well as parliamentarians and parliamentary technical staff. Observers will monitor voting across different municipalities on the islands of Santiago and São Vicente to verify how the electoral process unfolds.
Beyond observing the vote itself, the mission plans meetings with representatives of the various candidacies, government authorities, and institutions responsible for administering and supervising the elections. These meetings are intended to gather information from key stakeholders and to follow the different stages of the process.
Cabo Verde is expected to receive approximately 150 international observers in total, deployed by six organisations, to monitor the presidential election. In previous electoral cycles, international missions delivered broadly positive assessments — as was the case with the legislative elections held in May of this year — while recommending improvements in areas such as voter participation and logistical organisation.
Sunday’s election has approximately 426,500 registered voters, of whom around 76,900 — representing 18% of the total — reside in the diaspora. Six candidates are competing for the presidency this year, one fewer than in the 2021 election, when seven candidates stood.
Among the contenders is incumbent President José Maria Neves, who is seeking a second term with the backing of the African Party for the Independence of Cabo Verde (PAICV), the party currently in power. Former justice minister Joana Rosa is running with the support of the Movement for Democracy (MpD), the main opposition force.
The remaining candidates are Gilson Alves, a physician; Casimiro Pina, a jurist; Antero Tavares, a judge; and Loisito Sousa, an academic. Together, the six candidates are contesting the presidency in an election that will determine Cabo Verde’s next head of state.
The CPLP, which marks its 30th anniversary this year, comprises nine member states: Angola, Brazil, Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Portugal, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Timor-Leste.
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/?p=561240
