AYV News, 23 August, 2024
The ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) and main opposition All People’s Congress (APC) Party have joined other people in Makeni city, Northern Sierra Leone to discuss Regional Message Development System, aimed to raise awareness about the findings and recommendations of the Tripartite Committee’s Report.
The meeting was organised by the International Republican Institute (IRI), in collaboration with the Ministry of Information and Civic Education and the National Democratic Institute (NDI), with sessions held in Makeni, covering the North, Northwest and Western Rural/Urban regions, and in Bo for the Southern and Eastern regions.
The meeting’s primary goal was to develop messages based on the Tripartite Committee’s findings and recommendations, focusing on three key themes: Electoral Management, Institutional Reform and Legal Reform.
These messages will be disseminated through various communications channels to target different audiences, from national to local levels.
IRI Resident Director, Jimmy Sankaituah, provided an overview of the meeting’s purpose, emphasizing IRI’s commitment to supporting reforms that align with international best practices.
“It is the intention of IRI to support the reforms by bringing in an expert in legal affairs so that the reforms will reflect international best standards,” he stated. Representatives from various institutions, including the Political Parties Registration Commission (PPRC), the Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (EC-SL), the Ministry of Information and Civic Education (MoICE), and USAID, also delivered statements during the opening session.
Additionally, Dr. Francis Sowa, the meeting’s Lead Facilitator, provided an overview and detailed analysis of the Tripartite Committee’s findings and recommendations.
In both regional sessions, participants were divided into groups to brainstorm and develop potential messages targeting various audiences, including political parties, women, youth, persons with disabilities (PWDs) and the general population, while focusing on mapping potential partners and audiences for effective message dissemination.
Participants outlined target audiences and communication channels, including MDAs, NGOs, CBOs, PWDs, CSOs, radio, TV, newspapers, social media, town halls, community meetings, and outreach engagements, and outlined the next steps for the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening (CEPPS) partners and associates.