The African Union (AU) and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) are pleased to announce the arrival of the AU-COMESA Election Observation Mission (AU-COMESA EOM) for the 13 August 2026 General Elections in the Republic of Zambia. The Mission has been deployed at the invitation of the Government of Zambia and the Electoral Commission of Zambia.

The AU-COMESA EOM is led H.E. Hailemariam Dessalegn Boshe, former Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia and deputised by Ambassador Marie-Pierre Lloyd, a member of the COMESA Committee of Elders from the Republic of Seychelles.
The Mission comprises 93 Short-Term Observers (STOs) drawn from ambassadors accredited to the AU, Election Management Bodies, civil society, representatives of youth organisations and election, human rights, gender and media experts.
The observers are drawn from Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Saharawi Republic, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tunisia, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
The observers will be deployed to all the 10 provinces of Zambia to observe the elections including the electoral environment, Election Day proceedings and the immediate post-election period.
The AU-COMESA EOM will conduct its assessment based on the electoral legal framework of Zambia, the OAU/AU Declaration on the Principles Governing Democratic Elections in Africa, the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance and the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation, among other relevant regional and international instruments.
The Mission shall interact with electoral stakeholders, including the Electoral Commission of Zambia, state institutions, political parties, civil society organisations, religious leaders, the media, representatives of the international community based in Zambia and other election observation missions.
The Mission will release a Preliminary Statement on its overall findings and assessment of the electoral process at a Press Conference in Lusaka, on 15 August 2026. A final and comprehensive report will be issued after the official announcement of the final election results.

For more information about the Mission and its activities, please contact:
Samuel Atuobi: AU-COMESA EOM Coordinator | Political Affairs, Peace and Security Department | African Union Commission | Email: Atuobis@africanunion.org
Richard Atwaru: AU-COMESA EOM | Governance, Peace and Security Unit | COMESA Secretariat | Email: RAtwaru@comesa.int
For Media Inquiries, please contact:-
Ms. Lulit Kebede | Communication Officer, Political Affairs, Peace and Security Department |African Union Commission | Email: lulitk@africanunion.org
Vidur Ramdin: AU-COMESA EOM | Corporate Communications Unit | COMESA Secretariat | Email: VRamdin@comesa.int
Lusaka, 10 August 2026

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