STORY: Electoral authorities launch five-year strategic

plan in lead-up to Somalias one-person, one-vote

election
TRT: 3:00
SOURCE: UNSOM PUBLIC INFORMATION
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CREDIT REQUIRED: UNSOM PUBLIC INFORMATION
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/SOMALI/NAT SOUND
DATELINE: 11/DEC/2017, MOGADISHU, SOMALIA

Shot list

1. Wide shot, invited guests and participants present at the function

2. Med shot, invited guests and participants present at the function
3. Close up, Raisedon Zenenga, Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-
General (DSRSG) for Somalia, Jamal Hassan, the Minister of Planning, Investment
and Economic Development and Halima Ismail Ibrahim, Chairperson of the
National Independent Electoral Commission (NIEC)
4. Wide shot, invited guests and participants present at the function
5. Med shot, invited guests and participants present at the function
6. Close up, Jamal Hassan, the Minister of Planning, Investment and Economic
Development and George Conway, Country Director of the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP) for Somalia
7. SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) RAISEDON ZENENGA, DEPUTY SPECIAL
REPRESENTATIVE OF THE UN SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR SOMALIA.
The strategic plan lays out clearly how NIEC intends to deliver its mandate over
the coming years, leading to universal suffrage elections. It also underscores the
importance of the integral participation of women in the electoral process as
both voters and electoral officials. The lexicon provides a common linguistic
framework, in Somali, of the electoral terminology which will guide key activities
including the drafting of the electoral law and public outreach to voters.

8. Wide shot, invited guests and participants present at the function

9. Med shot, invited guests and participants present at the function
10. Close up, George Conway, Country Director of the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) for Somalia
11. SOUNDITE: (SOMALI) JAMAL HASSAN, MINISTER OF PLANNING, INVESTMENT
AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
 The five-year strategic plan that you have developed is in line with the National
Development Plan and the constitution of the country and is derived from
constitutional principles and had it not been for that, you would have met a lot
of challenges and I appreciate your efforts.

12. Wide shot, invited guests and participants present at the function
13. Med shot, invited guests and participants present at the function
14. Close up, invited guests and participants present at the function
15. SOUNDBITE: (SOMALI) HALIMA ISMAIL IBRAHIM, CHAIRPERSON OF THE
NATIONAL INDEPENDENT ELECTORAL COMMISSION.
We will move to all the regions. We will go to all the federal member states
where we will visit four main towns in each federal member state, consulting
with the people there and we will start with Benadir region, where we will
consult with the people living there in order to achieve a free and fair one -
person-one-vote election.

16. Wide shot, invited guests and participants present at the function
17. Med shot, invited guests and participants present at the function
18. Wide shot, journalists cover the proceedings during the function
19. Close up, a journalist covers the proceedings during the function

STORY:

Electoral authorities launch five-year strategic plan in lead-up to Somalias one-

person, one-vote elections

Mogadishu, 11 December 2017 Somalias electoral authorities today launched a

five-year roadmap known as the Strategic Plan to guide the management and
administration of the countrys 2020-2021 elections, also known as the one-person,
one-vote elections.

The Strategic Plan will be the baseline for the ongoing work by the Commission and
will provide the roadmap for the implementation of elections so as to attain one-
person, one-vote in 2020, the Chairperson of the National Independent Electoral
Commission (NIEC), Halima Ismail Ibrahim, said at the launch event in the capital.

The Strategic Plan, developed with the support of the United Nations Assistance
Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), will provide guidelines for all the activities to be
undertaken by the Commission and will be subject to periodic review.
The Plan lays out clearly how the NIEC intends to deliver its mandate over the
coming years, leading to universal suffrage, the Secretary-Generals Deputy Special
Representative for Somalia, Raisedon Zenenga, said at the launch.

The UNSOM official added that the UN was working closely with donors to finalize
the programme for the next stage of the world bodys electoral support for the East
African country. That programme is expected to focus on essential steps to be
undertaken in 2018.

The NIEC will travel in the near future to all the Federal Member States, where we
will visit four main towns, [and] consult with all stakeholders, in order to achieve
free and fair one-person-one-vote elections, NIECs Chairperson added.

At todays event, the NIEC also launched the Somali Lexicon of Electoral
Terminology, a glossary of terms in English, Somali and Arabic languages, which
harmonizes the definition of 481 key electoral terms.

The Lexicon was developed to provide a common linguistic framework of electoral

terminology, which will guide related activities, including the drafting of the electoral
law and public outreach to voters, to ensure that every Somali citizen exercises their
civic right to vote.

Speaking at the launch, the Federal Minister of Planning, Jamal Hassan, noted that
the Strategic Plan was derived from constitutional principles, in line with the
countrys National Development Plan and the Constitution, and commended the
NIEC for both the roadmap and the glossary.

END.