Peers Learning Mission to Liberia 2023

A peer learning mission was deployed to Liberia for the first round of the 2023 presidential election. The deployed mission included five chairpersons and commissioners and stayed in the country from 6 to 13 October 2023.

The delegation was composed of chairpersons and commissioners from Ghana, South Africa, Malawi, and Ethiopia. The mission was undertaken by EMB representatives to support and demonstrate solidarity with their colleague, Ms. Davidetta A.T. Brown Lansanag, Chairperson of the National Elections Commission of Liberia, and her fellow commissioners.

The mission served as a valuable resource for its peers, providing constructive advice and feedback before and after the elections. The mission also coordinated with the AU and other international and regional organizations that had deployed missions during the elections.

Specifically, and in chronological order, the delegation met with:

• The Elections Coordinating Committee
• The ECONEC Delegation
• The West Africa Network for Peacebuilding and the National Elections Response Group
• The leadership of the National Elections Commission
• The AU and ECOWAS Heads of State Election Observation Mission briefing

On election day, the mission observed four (4) polling stations in different areas of Monrovia. After the close of polls, the mission observed the vote-counting process. The following day, the mission observed the tabulation of results at the National and Montserrado tally center at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex.

The chairpersons and commissioners prepared a communiqué containing a series of eight findings regarding election day and the overall process, along with suggestions drawn from the experience of each country. The communiqué was presented to the NEC Chairperson, Ms. Davidetta A.T. Brown Lansanag, during a meeting between the mission and the NEC commissioners, which provided an opportunity to discuss and analyze the mission’s findings and outcomes.