Madagascar: Cost of elections
Updated June 2010
Extracted from: Lucien Toulou 2009 "Chapter 6: Madagascar" IN Denis Kadima and Susan Booysen (eds) Compendium of Elections in Southern Africa 1989-2009: 20 Years of Multiparty Democracy, EISA, Johannesburg, 209-211.
Despite efforts to get relevant information from the electoral authorities in Madagascar, it has not been possible to have comprehensive data about the cost of elections, including the cost of activities such as voter education and electoral staff training, the contribution of the Malagasy government and that of foreign government and international agencies. Accessing information on the cost of elections is never an easy task. It is about divulgating details on the use of resources by governments, disclosure and transparency in the management of funds allocated to specific projects or programmes.
Nevertheless, with no mention of their cost, the Department of State reported a range of activities undertaken by the US government to promote democracy in Madagascar, including (United States Department of State, 2006, 40-41):
- Partnership with international donors to encourage free, fair, transparent and peaceful presidential elections;
- Funding of five billboards and 3,000 posters that encouraged presidential candidates and citizens to peacefully accept election results;
- US-sponsored workshops on responsible election reporting and media-monitoring project;
- Funding of the translation of a civic education guide into Malagasy, distribution of 10 000 copies to government, education institutions, NGOs, media, and the private sector, and a weekly civic education programme on the national radio;
- Capacity-building training to the country's largest consortium of national election observers and funding of 2,000 local election observers and 25 US teams, who were deployed to polling stations nationwide.
In addition, the UNDP coordinated various programmes supported by the international community ahead of the 2006 presidential election, including (UNDP Madagascar Undated):
- The computerisation of the national voters' roll funded by the EU to the amount of €1 200 000. The EU also funded capacity-building activities for MPs and senators, election administration institutions, and the dispatching of ID and voters cards for €1 950 000;
- The funding and timely dispatching of election materials, voter education and other activities with technical and financial support from the UNDP to the amount of US$1,267,000, Switzerland - US$41,000, and Norway - US$1,000,000.
According to the UNDP-Madagascar website, the expected contribution of the Malagasy government to the above projects was US$4,500,116 (UNDP Madagascar Undated). Table 5 below indicates funding provided by the Malagasy government only. All amounts are shown in US dollars.
Table 5: Cost of elections (2006-2007)
| December 2006 presidential election | April 2007 Constitutional Referendum | 2007 National Assembly Elections | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Administration | 1 970 903 | 1 893 632 | 1 537 051 |
| Provincial services | 1 634 097 | 1 588 870 | 1 543 775 |
| National Electoral Council | 49 305 | 53 101 | 221 729 |
| Other departments and services | 52 488 | 27 323 | 28 522 |
| Total | 3 706 793 | 3 562 926 | 3 331 077 |
Table source
Ministry of interior and decentralisation, June 2008.
References
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE 2006 Supporting Human Rights and Democracy: the US Record 2006, Department of State Publication 11411, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour, Bureau of Public Affairs, [www] http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/80699.pdf [PDF document, opens new window] (accessed 8 July 2009).
UNDP MADAGASCAR UNDATED, [www] http://www.snu.mg/new/sites/pnud/article.php?article_id=390&lang=fr [opens new window] (accessed 08 July 2009).