This question is posted on behalf of Rehab Abd Almohsen, journalist for www.scidev.net .

Several initiatives exist all over the world to incorporate information technology into election observation. Many NGOs have used the Ushahidi platform (http://www.ushahidi.com/) to develop real-time monitoring. Some projects have focused on election violence and others on reporting allegations of fraud. Typically, citizens report via mobile phones or other devices. The data may or may not be evaluated before it is published (methods vary).

Governments have also used technology for observation. Azerbaijan introduced webcams into its polling places in 2008, and other countries have followed (Russia and Ukraine, among others). I wrote a bit about this issue on my research blog (direct link to webcam posts here: http://vse-na-vybory.blogspot.com/search?q=webcam).

I am less familiar with the Middle East and North Africa, but there have been experiments in many parts of the world. I hope this is helpful.

Erik Herron

Several initiatives exist all over the world to incorporate information technology into election observation. Many NGOs have used the Ushahidi platform (http://www.ushahidi.com/) to develop real-time monitoring. Some projects have focused on election violence and others on reporting allegations of fraud. Typically, citizens report via mobile phones or other devices. The data may or may not be evaluated before it is published (methods vary).

Governments have also used technology for observation. Azerbaijan introduced webcams into its polling places in 2008, and other countries have followed (Russia and Ukraine, among others). I wrote a bit about this issue on my research blog (direct link to webcam posts here: http://vse-na-vybory.blogspot.com/search?q=webcam).

I am less familiar with the Middle East and North Africa, but there have been experiments in many parts of the world. I hope this is helpful.

Erik Herron

La ciencia y la tecnología, como consecuencias naturales, están rebasando  o ya rebasaron en algunos sitios,  las formas tradicionales del tema político y electoral.  El   futuro nos alcanzó y esta alcanzando a la humanidad, por el uso de medios electrónicos y en línea que vemos en todas las áreas y en las calles. Llegará el día en que se dependa de las máquinas si nos acostumbramos a ellas. Será: “ONE CIBERWORD.” Pero son los adelantos tecnológico-científicos los que corren paralelamente con nuestra civilización. Llegarán primero a las regiones que se encuentran en punta del desarrollo y paulatinamente llegarán a el resto del mundo. Por estas razones, los que no cuenten con tecnología, se impone apurar la modernización en los actos electorales. Los países están obligados a evitar quedar rezagados en este fenómeno de ciencia y tecnología que crece día a día. Tenemos encima la votación electrónica con la aplicación de las urnas electrónicas; la notificación por correo electrónico, fax y teléfono; los juicios electorales en línea; el programa de resultados electorales por Internet; la visualización de los observadores por medios electrónicos; el uso de teléfonos móviles,  dispositivos Webcams, red social, aparatos fotoeléctricos, etc.

Es necesario que como plan futuro,  los organismos electorales, mejoren su función y consecuentemente mejoren la observación comicial, con el objeto teleológico de dar confianza, certeza y credibilidad a sus actos, con el propósito de formular sus resultados de manera inmediata a base de estos sistemas cibernéticos y la ciudadanía gradualmente asimile los resultados finales. Con esta acción logrará dar un paso gigantesco para  acabar con los reclamos violentos  de los sectores sociales que tengan dudas o  de supuestos fraudes en las elecciones, pero es obligado que se limpien las bases de datos de los medios electrónicos y tecnológicos, a los ojos de todos, cuestión  que indudablemente  no solo tendrá mejora informativa u observación electoral en esa teoría de los mensajes o teoría de la información, sino generar confianza pública en el empleo de esos cibersistemas políticos.

The Organization I work for has worked  with One World in Mali, Sierra-Leone and Senegal for a proactive election observation by CSOs. it is what we call the Election Situation Room. ESR. We even have developed a guide to facilitate such proactive monitoring including the use of the Ushahidi platform.

But we worked with other technical partners than One Wolrd in countries such as Liberia, Ghana and now Guinea for the up coming legislatives elections.  Today we have been approached by ECOWAS and the AU to have a kind of toolkit that would be available to CSOs and Institutions. We are calling it the ESR -Tool Kit project.

We work in West Africa so most of the experiences I have personally experienced are in the region. But many other countries in Africa have showed interest beyond the region.

I unfortunately don't know much about Middle East and North Africa but I have been approached during the presidential elections in Mali by an Algerian CSO saying that they are looking forward experiencing it for next elections in the country. and also if the AU confirms its interest, it could be  developed in at least North Africa .

Thank You

Similar projects have been conducted in the Arab World. During the 2009 Lebanon parliamentary elections, the Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections (LADE) was the first election observation group in the Arab World to use SMS to collect observer reports from the field. During the 2011 Tunisian National Constituent Assembly elections, multiple election observation groups, including Mourakiboun, ATIDE, and I Watch, used SMS to collect reports from observers in real time. And during the 2011-12 Egyptian People's Assembly Elections, Project Rakeeb deployed observers to a representative sample of polling stations nationwide, collected observer reports via SMS, and used Google maps to visualize their findings. 

The use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) such as mobile phones, smartphone apps, and data visualization platforms can significantly enhance election observation efforts by increasing the speed, efficiency, and impact of communications. Notably, SMS reporting systems offers a rapid means of data collection. Computer databases can be developed so that SMS reports can be sent from the observer directly to a central data center. In many cases, mapping platforms can be configured using an application programming interface to visualize findings in real-time.     

However, there are huge differences both between and within countries when it comes to communications infrastructure.  Before applying technology, observation groups must have a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the infrastructure for mobile and internet communications.  Moreover, while technology can facilitate more rapid internal communications, there are practical issues that need to be considered: what is the cost? Are there implications for data security? Is there sufficient infrastructure throughout the country? How reliable is the system? Will additional training be necessary? Will the scope for human error be increased?

Cognizant of the importance of ICTs, DI recently organized the FW: Tunisia #ElecTech Un/Conference in March 2013 for election observation groups and technology developers. The #ElecTech Un/conference helped to bridge the gap between the two sides and promote the adoption of innovative approaches, tools and techniques for safeguarding elections. DI is currently working with the LADE and Mourakiboun to develop open data platforms to promote data-driven decision making and advocate for electoral reform using data and analysis. DI is also working with I Watch to implement a project that harmonizes election observation methodology and crowdsourcing techniques to increase citizen participation in election observation activities.  

Let me know if you'd like more information of have additional questions. 

Citizen election observation has advanced to the point where it is rare to learn of observation efforts that do not incorporate information communication technologies (ICTs). As citizen observers incorporate more systematic methodologies – focusing on collecting quality data on the process, in addition to building public confidence through observer presence – they need more advanced communications platforms to receive and process observer reports quickly. This is particularly important for parallel vote tabulations (PVTs), where rapid reporting from a random, representative sample of polling stations allows an observer group to comment on the overall quality of the process as well as verify official vote counts.

The first citizen observation group to use SMS reporting on election day in Africa was the National Election Watch (NEW) in Sierra Leone. NDI first worked with NEW during the 2002 elections and supported integrating a Frontline SMS reporting system in their 2007 observation effort. NEW was OneWorld’s partner in Sierra Leone in 2012; NDI had the pleasure of partnering with OneWorld and COSCE in Senegal in 2012 and OneWorld and APEM in Mali in 2013. Numerous other citizen observation groups around the world have incorporated SMS reporting into their observation strategies – local developers have partnered with international consultants to develop tools in Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe on the African continent, for example. (For a background on SMS in election observation, see Ian Schuler’s 2008 article in Innovations: http://www.ndi.org/files/2329_sms_engpdf_06242008.pdf)

In the MENA region, the leading groups in citizen observation are generally the Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections (LADE) and Al Hayat Center, and their partners in the RASED network, in Jordan. Their expertise built over several election cycles includes in house skills to develop interactive reporting databases and observer management tools (LADE first used SMS reporting in 2009).  They’ve become leaders in the region sharing their skills with peer organizations, particularly in transitioning countries in North Africa. Observer groups in Egypt and Tunisia have also emerged as innovators in the use of technology, particularly because of the tech savvy populations and strong social media culture. Not only are they incorporating SMS reporting on election day, but these groups are also exploring SMS for get out the vote efforts, mobile public opinion surveys, smartphone applications and more interactive visualization and mapping of their findings to share with the broader public throughout the entire election cycle. These groups are the standouts, but there are also interesting steps being made in Algeria, Libya, Yemen and elsewhere to advance election observation in formerly restrictive political environments.

Maître Christine NDAYISHIMIYE du Burundi

J'ai eu l'occasion de faire partie d'une mission d'observation électorale au Ghana en décembre dernier, ladite mission était conduite par EISA ( Electoral institut  for sustainable democracy in Africa) et la transmision des informations des observateurs sur terrain vers l"équipe de coordination était faite à l'aide des machines permettant la réception instantanée de ces dernières. Comme EISA est une ONG internationale, il se pourrait qu'elle ait eu à expérimenter cette méthode dans les pays du Magreb, je pense donc qu'elle serait mieux placée pour fournir une réponse adéquate à la question.

La solución de monitoreo y seguimiento en línea y en tiempo real, permite a las instituciones del estado tener de primera mano los sucesos y las soluciones a cada problemática, también se abre la puerta para que la sociedad civil pueda participar y monitorear los procesos electorales y generar información que puede ser centralizada y analizada por el aplicativo, mediante el envío de correos, Tweets o mensajes cortos. Pero el centro de la aplicación informática consiste en el uso desarrollo (programas app)  para móviles, que permiten a los funcionarios autorizados (diferentes instituciones), alimentar la base de datos permanentemente indicando la posición en que se encuentran, validando la identidad del funcionario y   almacenando la información necesaria para presentarla en Salas Situacionales o salones de crisis, que permitan la toma de decisiones con criterios estadísticos y reales, lo que  ayudará en el establecimiento de un sistema de alerta más ágil de información y en el monitoreo electoral, convenciones de semáforos.

La solución de monitoreo y seguimiento en línea y en tiempo real, permite a las instituciones del estado tener de primera mano los sucesos y las soluciones a cada problemática, también se abre la puerta para que la sociedad civil pueda participar y monitorear los procesos electorales y generar información que puede ser centralizada y analizada por el aplicativo, mediante el envío de correos, Tweets o mensajes cortos. Pero el centro de la aplicación informática consiste en el uso desarrollo (programas app)  para móviles, que permiten a los funcionarios autorizados (diferentes instituciones), alimentar la base de datos permanentemente indicando la posición en que se encuentran, validando la identidad del funcionario y   almacenando la información necesaria para presentarla en Salas Situacionales o salones de crisis, que permitan la toma de decisiones con criterios estadísticos y reales, lo que  ayudará en el establecimiento de un sistema de alerta más ágil de información y en el monitoreo electoral, convenciones de semáforos.

Having just participated in Election Auditing (Obeservation) in Canada, we filled out paper documentation and then entered them into an online survey program that was monitored by the Audit Coordinator. For us, it was not so much reporting current/imminent issues but giving feedback and commentary on improvements for future elections. This particular electoral body has legislation that prohibits recording or communication devices within the polling station (with the exception of the SDRO).

Posted on behalf of Rehab Abd Almohsen, journalist for www.scidev.net .

I would like to send you my sincere appreciation, and also my thanks for the great help. Please find the election monitoring story below, I will be pleased if you could share it others and if you have any comments, I will be happy to hear them.

Article on www.scidev.net: SMS to help monitor elections in the Arab World

Thanks

Rehab