BURKINA FASO: WEST AFRICAN ELECTORAL COMMISSIONS DISCUSS

UNCLAS OUAGADOUGOU 000925

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KDEM UV
SUBJECT: BURKINA FASO: WEST AFRICAN ELECTORAL COMMISSIONS DISCUSS
BIOMETRIC TECHNOLOGY FOR VOTER REGISTRATION


1. (U) Summary: Burkina Faso's National Independent Electoral
Commission (CENI) hosted a three-day workshop for a network of West
African States (RESEAO) to discuss the use of technology,
specifically the use of mobile biometric technology, in the voter
registration processes. The workshop, which was financed by the UN
Development Program (UNDP),allowed RESEAO members to share their
experiences with using technology to improve the electoral process.
Representatives from UNDP, the African Union, the Economic Community
of West African States (ECOWAS),and the Minister of Technology,
participated in the opening ceremony and gave opening remarks to
workshop participants and guests. End Summary.


2. (U) From October 2-4, CENI hosted a three-day workshop for West
African states that are members of the recently established Network
of Structures in Charge of Elections in West Africa (RESAO) to
discuss the use of technology for voter registration. The event,
called "Elections and New Technologies of Information and
Communication," was funded by the UN Development Program (UNDP) with
a grant of approximately US $120,000 and focused on the use of
information technology to streamline the voter registration and
identification process for electoral commissions throughout West
Africa. The workshop focused on technology such as biometric
information, which could be used as a tool to decrease fraud
associated with voter registration.


3. (SBU) On October 2, Poloff attended the workshop's opening
ceremony in which representatives from UNDP, ECOWAS, and the
Minister of Technology gave remarks to workshop participants and
guests. UNDP country representative, Rubi Sandhu-Rojon, highlighted
the importance of incorporating ease and accessibility into the
registration process, while also minimizing the opportunity for
people to abuse the transparency of the system. In Burkina Faso,
Rojon noted, seven different forms of identification are accepted
for voter registration, making the process both accessible to the
public and susceptible to fraud. Rojon noted that legitimate
electoral systems contribute to the advancement and sustainability
of democracy and social peace.


4. (SBU) In his opening remarks, Minister of Technology and
Information, Noel Kabore expressed the high level of interest by the
Government of Burkina Faso in exploring the pros and cons of
incorporating biometric and other technologies into Burkina's
electoral process. In his capacity as both CENI and RESAO
president, Moussa Tapsoba expressed his satisfaction with the
progress that Burkina Faso and other countries have made in the
collection process they use for electoral lists, particularly in
moving from manual lists to alphanumeric systems. However, Tapsoba
noted that there is still a great deal of progress to be made.
Note. It is worth noting that Burkina Faso's CENI keeps an updated a
website, which is not true of many government websites in the
county. The website contains public elections information from past
elections and other useful information for voters. End Note.


5. (SBU) After the opening ceremony, guests were invited to observe
demonstrations from technical experts featuring mobile registration
kits that took fingerprints and photographs as well as a writing pad
to record signatures. These portable stations fold into carrying
cases that could be used by elections officials to register voters
across the country. One of the technical experts commented to
Poloff that the portable systems are highly useful and secure, and
have been implanted in other countries such as Morocco.


6. (SBU) Comment: Burkina Faso often lacks the necessary resources
to properly complete voter registration such as basic supplies,
furniture, and proper offices for registration centers. This kind
of mobile registration process could be beneficial to the country,
although the GOBF will still need to ensure access to voter
registration by citizens in the interior of the country, and will
need to be able to support the training and technical expertise
necessary for this kind of technology.

LAEUCHLI