Bernard J. Durkan
Question:287 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will report on the situation in Nigeria; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7437/03]
Written Answers - Democratic Election Procedures.
Presidential, parliamentary and state elections will be held in Nigeria in April and May 2003. The elections are of particular importance to the future political course of Nigeria. Four years after the end of a long period of military rule, the challenge for Nigeria will be to manage effectively the holding of free and fair elections.
EU missions in Abuja have been in close contact with the country's independent national election commission, INEC, to monitor its plans for the organisation of elections at which an estimated 65 million Nigerians will be eligible to vote. As can be appreciated, this is a considerable undertaking for any country. The EU Common Position on Nigeria, which was adopted in May 2002, identifies the development of a democratic culture in Nigeria as a key area of EU support. Consequently, the European Commission programme of support for the 2003 elections has been agreed at €6.5 million. The programme includes civic and voter education; capacity building and training for election observers; and monitoring and technical assistance to the INEC.
The elections have generated considerable interest in Nigeria and internationally. More than 1,000 international election observers are expected to monitor the conduct of the election campaigns as well as the elections themselves. An EU exploratory mission visited Nigeria in November 2002 to assess the pre-election situation and the feasibility of sending an EU mission to observe the elections. On 3 February, Nigeria's Foreign Minister wrote to President Prodi pledging the commitment of the Government of Nigeria to the holding of free and fair elections and extending an invitation to the EU to send observers. An EU election observation mission is being prepared and Ireland is planning to provide observers to the mission.
A successful series of elections this year will serve to deepen and strengthen the democratic process in Nigeria. For these reasons, the forthcoming elections in Nigeria will continue to be treated with the utmost priority by Ireland and our EU partners.