NIGER: DONORS DISCUSS ELECTIONS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NIAMEY 000303 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS ACCRA FOR USAID/WA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV EAID KDEM NG SUBJECT: NIGER: DONORS DISCUSS ELECTIONS REF: NIAMEY 269 ¶1. (U) There is an action request in paragraph 11. ¶2. (SBU) Summary: The GON has proposed an ambitious timetable to create a new voters registration list in preparation for elections in 2009, although it is not clear that registration can take place in the north given the security situation there. The GON is seeking $4.3 million from donors to compile the voter registration list. The USG needs to identify resources to support the registration and elections. End summary. ¶3. (U) The Prime Minister on March 7 announced that the National Council for Political Dialogue (known by its French acronym CNDP),which comprises all political parties, had recommended that local elections be postponed from July 2008 to at least January 2009. The Prime Minister also said that CNDP had recommended amendments to the electoral code, although he did not specify what those suggested amendments were. ¶4. (SBU) On March 10 the UNDP hosted a donors meeting to review the status of voter registration efforts. UNDP and EU representatives briefed representations from the French, Danish, Swiss, Belgian, Japanese and Canadian Embassies/development organizations on their February 28 meeting with GON officials regarding elections. The GON officials said that they proposed developing the voters list from scratch rather than revising the existing list. The deadline for completing the new list is November 2008, which would allow local elections to take place in early 2009. ¶5. (SBU) UNDP/EU officials distributed the GON's voter registration timetable: -- conduct an awareness campaign, April-May, 2008; -- conduct the electoral census, May 15-29, 2008; -- compile the census forms and establish voting bureaus, May-June, 2008; -- process the forms in Niamey, June-October, 2008; -- post the voters list, October-November 2008; -- complete and correct the lists, November-January, 2008; and -- prepare the final report on the exercise, January-April ¶2009. ¶6. (SBU) The officials also distributed the GON's proposed budget for the voter registration exercise, which totals about $9.1 million, of which $4.8 million would be provided by the GON. ¶7. (SBU) The purpose of the meeting was to alert donors of the need to fund the $4.3 million difference between the estimated cost of voter registration and the amount the GON plans to provide. The EU official explained that there were several possible modalities for donor support, including creating a common trust fund of donor contributions, or having various donors undertake or fund specific components of the exercise. In response to a question from one of the donors, the UNDP and EU officials said they were not sure that the GON's contribution was included in its 2008 budget, but opined that the GON could seek a supplemental budget. ¶8. (SBU) The French DCM asked whether the registration could take place in the north, given the security situation there. The UNDP resident dodged the question, but said that she could not imagine that the registration could exclude one part of the country. ¶9. (SBU) In response to one donor representative complaining that the GON had waited this long to seek donor support, the UNDP resident representative said it was actually UNDP and the EU -- not the GON -- that had taken the initiative to begin working on the matter. ¶10. (SBU) The group agreed that it should meet monthly to review the status of registration efforts. UNDP and EU will send a joint mission to Niger. They will prepare a document outlining the issues. They will seek to include an estimate of the cost of the election itself, as well as of the registration. ¶11. (SBU) Comment and action request: A key issue is whether the voter registration can be conducted in the north given the security situation. If not, the entire registration timetable is doubtful, raising real questions about whether NIAMEY 00000303 002 OF 002 the presidential and legislative elections can take place as scheduled in November and December of next year. That said, the USG needs to identify sources of assistance for voter registration and elections. This was highlighted as one of post's top priorities in its FY2009 and 2010 Mission Strategic Plans. Successful elections would mark the first transfer of power from one democratically elected government to another in Niger's history. ALLEN