FORMER Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham has been selected to lead a Commonwealth Observer Group that will monitor the national and provincial elections in Mozambique later this month.

This comes after an invitation from the National Electoral Commission of Mozambique.

Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma made the announcement yesterday.

The elections are slated for October 15.

“These elections are being held at an important juncture in the history of Mozambique, particularly following the signing of a peace agreement one month ago,” Mr Sharma said in a statement.

“Conducting credible elections is a collective strength of Commonwealth member states, and our charter recognises ‘the inalienable right of individuals to participate in democratic processes, in particular through free and fair elections in shaping the society in which they live’. It is our hope that these elections will consolidate the democratic process in Mozambique. The Commonwealth will be present to witness and observe them, and to work in partnership with Mozambique towards strengthening and embedding good practice.”

The observer group will consider the pre-electoral environment and election preparations. On Election Day, it will observe the voting process, vote-counting procedures and the announcement of results, in the light of international standards for democratic elections, to which the country has committed.

The Commonwealth Observer Group will submit its report to the Commonwealth secretary-general, who will in turn send it to the government of Mozambique, the National Electoral Commission, Mozambique’s political parties and eventually to all Commonwealth governments.

The 15-member Commonwealth Observer Group will be in Mozambique from October 9 to 21. A six-member Commonwealth Secretariat team will support the group.