The President of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Alieu Touray, has approved the dispatch of a fact-finding mission to Togo ahead of the legislative and regional elections scheduled for April 29, the regional bloc announced in a statement.
A seven-member team led by Maman Sambo Sidikou, a former AU representative in Mali and the Sahel, will conduct a pre-electoral assessment in line with Community documents and will engage with stakeholders in the electoral process.
"This includes officials from state institutions and agencies, political parties, the election management body, civil society organizations, media, and partners," the statement said.
Following the meeting with stakeholders, the ECOWAS delegation will submit a detailed report and recommendations to Touray, who will decide on the necessary steps to be taken, including the deployment of an Electoral Observation Mission for the elections, the bloc said.
Togo began a two-week campaign for legislative and regional elections on Sunday.
On April 4, the government announced a change in the schedule of parliamentary and regional elections, originally scheduled for April 20. According to the President of Togo, Faure Essozimna Gnassingbe, this was due to the need for "consultations" on constitutional reforms approved in March.
On March 25, Togo's National Assembly approved changes to the country's constitution, including a shift from a presidential to a parliamentary system and a single six-year term for Togo's president instead of five years, renewable once.
Five days later, the president, "attentive to the interest manifested by the populations" and "in a spirit of openness and constructive dialogue," returned the new constitution adopted by the deputies to the parliament and ordered a second reading.