SADC electoral observation mission arrives
DAR ES SALAAM: THE Southern African Development Community (SADC) Electoral Observation Mission (SEOM) has arrived in Tanzania ahead of the General Election scheduled for October 29, 2025, underscoring the regional bloc’s commitment to promoting transparent, credible and peaceful elections.
According to an official SADC statement released yesterday, the mission will be formally launched tomorrow in Dar es Salaam.
The Head of Mission, former Speaker of the Parliament of Malawi, Mr Richard Msowoya, arrived in the country yesterday to oversee and coordinate all mission activities.
His appointment was made by President Arthur Peter Mutharika of Malawi, who currently chairs the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation.
The deployment of the mission follows an official invitation by the Government of Tanzania, in line with SADC’s tradition of observing elections in member states.
Its mandate is to assess the electoral process against the Revised SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections of 2021, which emphasise citizen participation, the prevention of political violence and intimidation, respect for the outcomes and ensuring equal access to state media for all political parties.
“These principles emphasise the importance of citizen participation in democratic and development processes, the implementation of measures to prevent political violence, intimidation and intolerance and the promotion of equal opportunities for all political parties to access the State Media and for all citizens to access information,” the statement reads.
Mr Msowoya will issue a preliminary report on the electoral process on October 30, 2025.
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He is supported by the SADC Electoral Advisory Council (SEAC) and observers from member states including Botswana, the Kingdom of Eswatini, the Kingdom of Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe, alongside officials from the SADC Secretariat.
Ahead of field deployment, the observers attended a refresher training programme from Thursday to Sunday in Dar es Salaam.
The training focused on Tanzania’s legal, constitutional and electoral frameworks to ensure accurate and effective observation.
From October 19 to 27, the mission will hold consultations with key electoral stakeholders, followed by election-day monitoring and post-election exchanges with other observer missions, including the African Union Election Observation Mission (AUEOM), on October 30.
Observers will engage with institutions such as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of Tanzania, the Zanzibar Electoral Commission (ZEC), government departments, political parties, civil society and youth and women’s organisations.
“These engagements aim to provide a comprehensive understanding of the political and security environment, legal framework and the overall preparedness for the elections,” the SADC statement added, highlighting the mission’s goal of promoting credibility, transparency and public confidence in the electoral process.
