- The Cote d'Ivoire presidential elections are expected by 6 December 2009, the Ivorian Ambassador to UN Ilahiri A. Djedje said late Tuesday.
Addressing the UN Security Council, the Ambassador said the peace process in Cote d' Ivoire is not stalling, saying all the signatories to the Ouagadougou Political Agreement (OPA), signed in 2007, have agreed to hold elections before the end of the year.
The Ivorian polls have stalled since October 2005 due to a division between the rebel north and government-controlled south, separated by a buffer zone patrolled by UN and French peacekeepers.
He said as of Tuesday, 6,081,625 people of a total of 8,600,000 voters, had been registered, with the hope that registration could be completed by mid-June paving the way for preparations for the elections.
Meanwhile, United Nations envoy Choi Young-Jin, said international efforts in Côte d'Ivoire should now be focused on uniting the country which has been divided since 2002 between the government and the rebel forces.
In his latest report to the Security Council, Secretary-General Ban called for a realistic timetable for the holding of the long-postponed elections as a matter of urgency, saying that the polls would bring to a successful conclusion the current transitional arrangement in Côte d'Ivoire.
Earlier this month, the former Ivorian rebels called on their leader, Guillaume Soro, to quit the prime minister’s post and distance himself from the government, after accusing the government of stalling the processes leading to elections as prescribed in the peace agreement in 2007.
Côte d'Ivoire, a leading cocoa and diamond exporter in West Africa, was split in two after a botched coup attempt by New Forces (FN) rebels in 2002, with the north remaining under FN control.
afrol News - It is called "financial inclusion", and it is a key government policy in Rwanda. The goal is that, by 2020, 90 percent of the population is to have and actively use bank accounts. And in only four years, financial inclusion has doubled in Rwanda.
afrol News - The UN's humanitarian agencies now warn about a devastating famine in Sudan and especially in South Sudan, where the situation is said to be "imploding". Relief officials are appealing to donors to urgently fund life-saving activities in the two countries.
afrol News - Fear is spreading all over West Africa after the health ministry in Guinea confirmed the first Ebola outbreak in this part of Africa. According to official numbers, at least 86 are infected and 59 are dead as a result of this very contagious disease.
afrol News - It is already a crime being homosexual in Ethiopia, but parliament is now making sure the anti-gay laws will be applied in practical life. No pardoning of gays will be allowed in future, but activist fear this only is a signal of further repression being prepared.
afrol News / Africa Renewal - Ethiopia's ambitious plan to build a US$ 4.2 billion dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, 40 km from its border with Sudan, is expected to provide 6,000 megawatts of electricity, enough for its population plus some excess it can sell to neighbouring countries.
front page
| news
| countries
| archive
| currencies
| news alerts login
| about afrol News
| contact
| advertise
| español