Following backlash from stakeholders, the body responsible for the conduct and supervision of elections, the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC)'s benchmarking exercise in Zimbabwe was to focus on closely examining the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) accreditation machine.
In a press statement the IEC said the machine is used to produce accreditation cards for individuals who come to observe elections in the country. The IEC expressed concerns over the efficiency of their current accreditation system, which prompted them to seek insights from the ZEC's machine. The press statement highlighted the IEC's desire to improve their accreditation process by learning from the best practices of other election management bodies.
"Currently the IEC accredits both local and international election observers manually and this is not efficient," says the statement. In their statement, the IEC emphasized that the ZEC's accreditation machine has been widely praised in various reports, positioning it as a model to emulate. By undertaking this benchmarking exercise, the IEC aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the ZEC's machine and compare it with accreditation systems in other countries within the region.
Yesterday the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission's (ZEC) released a statement and picture that went viral on social media revealing that the IEC has visited them on a benchmarking exercise. The move received backlash from locals prompting a response from the IEC.
According to a press statement issued by the IEC, the trip took place on February 12, and was specifically aimed at studying the accreditation system used by the ZEC. "The IEC sent their manager responsible for voter education and their chief publications relations officer to Zimbabwe to look at the ZEC's accreditation machine for election observers," reads the statement.
