The Southern African Development Community (SADC) deployed, a team of electoral experts on an Electoral Needs Assessment Mission (NAM) to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) in the Kingdom of Lesotho from 31 August to 4 September 2026. The request is in line with the decision of the SADC Summit of August 2025 in Antananarivo, Republic of Madagascar, which reiterated the need for Member States to report annually on the implementation of the recommendations of the SADC Electoral Observation Missions (SEOMs), including challenges faced and the support required to achieve full implementation thereof.
The IEC requested intervention by the SADC Secretariat that would assist them in strengthening democratic governance, institutional and technical in consultation with the relevant electoral stakeholders. For the IEC, the mission specifically provides an important opportunity for them to engage with SADC electoral experts on the Commission’s institutional, operational and technical needs and to identify areas where targeted technical support can assist Lesotho in strengthening its electoral processes
The NAM follows conclusion of the SADC Electoral Advisory Council’s (SEAC) Post-Election Review Mission that was undertaken in March 2026 in line with the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections. According to the SEAC Post-Election Review, two (2) of the eleven recommendations have been implemented, while nine (11) are at various stages of implementation.
The SADC Secretariat team met with IEC Exco and further went on to meet with national stakeholders such as Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Relations, Speaker of the National Assembly, Political Parties (represented and non-represented in Parliament), Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs), the Media, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Lesotho and the Lesotho Mounted Police Force.
The mission was supported from the Programme on Enhancing the Capability and Effectiveness of SADC’s Peace and Security Architecture (ECESPA). ECESPA is funded by the @EuropeanUnion with the objective of enhancing the capability and effectiveness of SADC Peace and Security Architecture to enable early response and action.
