There were positive steps towards converting the state-owned TBC into a public service. However, a law governing the public service broadcaster should: clearly define the scope of its work and establish concrete public service requirements; require the broadcaster to provide citizens with impartial and balanced information; establish a system of appointments to the management sufficiently independent of the state authorities. As the situation stands now, director generals and directors of the board are appointed by the president of the Union and the minister of information and culture. The EU EOM considers that currently TBC is not independent in its policies and is not free from state interference. State authorities should refrain from any kind of interference in the activities of media and their representatives. Pressures, threats, lawsuits and denunciations discourage the establishment of a free media environment.

Although Tanzania started the process of reforming its media laws both in the mainland and Zanzibar, the process has been pending for several years and has not effectively taken into account stakeholders’ views. The mandate and responsibilities of state-owned broadcasters need to be clearly defined in order to guarantee the broadcasters’ independence from the authorities.

The judiciary should have a clear supervisory role over the performance and decisions of the electoral commissions. The decisions of the NEC and the ZEC should be susceptible to challenge in court by way of judicial review immediately after the nomination of candidates period and throughout the entire process. Aggrieved parties should not have to wait until the announcement of results to seek recourse to justice.

To increase transparency and confidence in the process, the NEC and the ZEC ought to allow unlimited access to political party representatives and observers during all stages of the aggregation of presidential, National Assembly, House of Representatives and councilors elections. Proper facilities should be put in place to allow for an overall monitoring of the process, especially since the presidential results declared by the NEC and the ZEC cannot be challenged in court.

The role of security forces on election day should be revised, particularly in Zanzibar where there was an extremely high level of security display prior and during the elections. When combined with the sometimes ominous police presence at some polling stations, such presence and display of force certainly does not contribute to a tranquil atmosphere on election day.

The electoral commissions should introduce a system by which details of turned away voters holding a voter card but not found on the voters’ register are recorded at the polling stations. The records should be forwarded to the commissions for scrutiny and further action.

Electoral procedural safeguards have been introduced effectively improving the polling process, yet election staff is not always aware of the meaning or importance of upholding certain electoral principles. A number of shortcomings were noted and some election procedures were differently implemented as was the case of the incorrect positioning of the voting booth inside the polling station that in several instances compromised the secrecy of the ballot. Procedural details regarding the key stages of the aggregation, transmission and announcement of results should be clear and unambiguous. It is therefore advisable to strengthen training of lower level election staff while procedural manuals are made largely available to election staff and stakeholders far before election day.

In order to provide an effective legal remedy, the Election Law could expressly stipulate for the right for election stakeholders to challenge the overall election results, and not just the results of the polling station, the polling centre or the constituency. It could also explicitly stipulate the powers of the courts to order re-counts, partial or total exclusion of ballots, partial or total re-runs and partial or total cancellation of results and could specify objective criteria for invalidation of results.

In order to ensure a balance between timely adjudication of election disputes and respect for the right to an effective remedy, the timeframes for submission of complaints and appeals to the HNEC and the courts respectively, could be amended. It is recommended that the Election Law provides a three to five-day deadline for submission of complaints, and a three to five-day deadline for submission and consideration of appeals. Deadlines could start from the notification of a decision, rather than from the time when a decision is issued.

The EMB could aim for a more gender-balanced work force in future elections, especially in management positions and could provide sufficient training opportunities for women employees.

The authorities could contemplate the lifting of the reservations on the CEDAW to ensure full compliance with the obligations of that convention. The Mission encourages the authorities to reexamine these reservations so as to identify the negative consequences they may have for the application of the principle of equal voting rights.

In order to guarantee gender equality among the individual candidates, financial incentives and capacity building for women candidates could be considered. The government could support training initiatives aimed at increasing women’s political participation such as the practicalities of running a campaign and the strategic importance of teaming up in support networks and sustain it beyond the election period.

To broaden the diversity of the information sources available to the electorate, the state could facilitate the distribution of the print media and the access of the citizens to the Internet, for instance in community centres, schools and other learning facilities.

It is recommended, that all paid political advertising would be recognizable as such by viewers/readers, and contestants would have the possibility of buying advertising time/space under equal conditions and payment rates. The relevant media could announce the prices for the advertisement in due time, before the start of the official campaign, and maintain them throughout the entire campaign. The future EMB, or the High Media Council (HMC), could control the timely publication of the prices and the media adherence to them.

The regulatory frameworks are recommended to provide for the obligation to cover election campaigns in a fair, balanced and impartial manner in the overall programme services of broadcasters, with due respect for their editorial independence.

The EMB could envisage the planning and implementation of extensive civic education and voter information awareness programmes, to be conducted during longer periods of time preceding the referendum and election days. The inclusion of remote rural populations, of internally displaced communities and of Libyans living abroad is important. Civil Society Organisations could actively cooperate with the EMB on a more streamlined platform, with broad involvement in the design and implementation of these programmes.

The legislator could consider discouraging the financial support of individual candidates by political parties. If those so supported candidates were elected, parties would benefit from extra seats outside of their 80 seats limit attributed by the Law.

A well planned candidate registration period is a key element of inclusivity. In order to allow all potential candidates to submit their applications on time, the EMB could announce the registration opening and closing dates well in advance, in order for electoral contestants to dispose of sufficient time to prepare the required documentation.

The existing voter lists issued by the HNEC could serve as the base on which to consolidate the production of an electronic voter database. Consideration could be given to establishing an electronic voter registration updating system which could be led by the EMB’s district offices, with closing cut off dates clearly stipulated in the law. More time for challenges to the voter lists could be allocated. The voters’ electronic database could be correlated with the population census in order to take account of specific population trends and movements.

In order to enhance the accuracy and completeness of the voter register and strengthen the public confidence in it, the EMB could consider to audit of the voter register once the register is digitalised.

The next EMB could envisage allowing for the full enjoyment of voting rights, by means of establishing the possibility of holding an anticipated voting exercise for the military personnel as well as for homebound and hospital bound persons.

In order to increase HNEC’s transparency in the implementation of the election, a streamlined, periodic and inclusive public communication mechanism could be envisaged. The district Subcommissions could also profit from an improved and regulated communication strategy. The establishment of weekly information meetings with stakeholders could be particularly beneficial, together with an organised distribution of relevant documentation pertaining to the legal and electoral frameworks. Decisions and regulations produced by the EMB could be disseminated and clearly explained to the stakeholders.

In order to clarify the ambiguity in the law in case of disqualification of an elected candidate, the Election Law could include provisions for the replacement of elected candidates, if they are disqualified after the announcement of preliminary results by final court decisions.

In order to safeguard the principle of a free and independent mandate, consideration could be given to avoid provisions in the Election Law that de facto introduce an imperative mandate and a disproportionate level of political parties’ control over the elected candidates.

In order to preserve equal voting power, electoral constituency boundaries could be revised, so as to provide for the territorial distribution of seats in accordance with a specific criterion, such as the population or the number of registered voters.