The members of the Assembly of the Republic's Committee on Public Administration and Local Government (4th Committee) have been receiving training on electoral legislation in the municipal town of Marracuene since Monday 17th.

The two-day event aims to provide parliamentarians with essential tools for producing legislation and revising the country's electoral legal framework.

The initiative, which has the support of the Institute for Multiparty Democracy (IMD), comes in a context marked by successive changes to electoral legislation, often made close to the polls.

According to the President of the 4th Committee, Maria do Céu Omar Amaral, the country is going through a period of significant progress in democratic governance, but constant political, social and evaluation changes require a permanent effort to update.

“This responsibility demands technical rigor and political maturity from us,” said Amaral, stressing that the training seminar on electoral legislation is a crucial forum for learning and reflection.

According to the MP, the seminar addresses several central themes, including the Genesis and Evolution of the Electoral System, the Guarantees of Stability and the Electoral Legislation Management System, as well as legislative drafting techniques to ensure that the production and revision of electoral law remains based on knowledge and institutional responsibility.

“The training also aims to strengthen the constructive capacity and political discipline of the deputies, allowing the Assembly of the Republic to continue to play its decisive role in safeguarding peace and stability in the country,” said the Chair of the 4th Committee, praising the support that the IMD has given the committee, especially in its training in these matters, requesting that this support be expanded to the exchange of experiences with similar committees in other parliaments, as well as in the process of monitoring the actions of the Executive.

For his part, IMD Program Manager Osman Aly Cossing said that training parliamentarians in these matters is particularly timely and strategic, especially in view of the recent post-election context and the window of opportunity created by the Inclusive National Dialogue, in which the reform of electoral legislation is one of its ten essential components.

“The recent electoral process has shown once again that the quality of electoral legislation has a direct impact on political stability, public trust and the credibility of democratic institutions themselves,” added Cossing, stressing that successive changes to the electoral package, often introduced at times when electoral operations are already underway, have resulted in problems of interpretation, legal uncertainty, lack of predictability and regulatory instability.

That's why, according to the IMD Program Manager, “this training represents an opportunity to begin, at the right time, a deeper reflection on how to guarantee greater stability, clarity and coherence in electoral legislation, an essential pillar in any consolidated democracy.”.

For Cossing, the IMD's hope is that this training session will provide MPs with the necessary elements and tools to produce electoral legislation that meets the demands of the moment, reinforcing the integrity of the system and restoring greater confidence to citizens.

With regard to legislative drafting techniques, a topic addressed by the Director of the Legislative Process Division of the Assembly of the Republic, Manuel Uache Bembele, the participants in the meeting are urged to cultivate a culture of reading and consulting various pieces of legislation, both nationally and internationally, including Constitutional Council rulings, scientific articles and doctoral theses, so that they can legislate with knowledge and confidence.

The training of the members of the 4th Committee in matters of revision and improvement of Mozambican electoral legislation is facilitated by national experts, with the support of the Government of Ireland, through its Embassy in Mozambique.