Switzerland supports free elections in Tunisia

BERN, Switzerland, October 23, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- Switzerland is committed to ensuring the success of the upcoming elections in Tunisia. Switzerland is a major stakeholder with a wide variety of programmes in Tunisia and is providing significant assistance to the UN Development Programme (UNDP), which is supporting the elections on behalf of the international community. In addition, Switzerland is promoting dialogue between the different parties and is sending election observers.

Tunisia is to make important political decisions this autumn: Parliamentary elections will be held on 26 October and presidential elections on 23 November. More than five million Tunisians are being called to cast their votes for a second time since the fall of the Ben Ali regime. Switzerland is an important partner both for Tunisia and the international community in the run-up to these elections.

It is providing financial and technical support for the preparation of the elections via international partner organisations such as UNDP, the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (CHD) and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES). It is supporting civil society and the media and is actively working to ensure a positive political climate in the run-up to the elections by organising a dialogue between the different parties.

Furthermore, Switzerland is financing the procurement of material such as an additional 18,000 ballot boxes, and is supporting unbiased media coverage of the elections by regional radio stations. A number of Swiss experts will be deployed to monitor the elections.