UK donates money for Somaliland's Presidential ElectionsHARGEISA, APRIL. 3, 2002--The British Government today donated Stg. Pounds 125000 as a financial support for Somaliland’s Presidential elections to be held on April 14, 2003, according to a statement issued by Myles Wickstead, Birtish Ambassador to Ethiopia.
The statement said that Stg. Pounds 116,000 would be given to the National Election Commission through the German organization known as GTZ.
The British donation is part of Stg. Pounds 200,000 to 250,000 to be extended by the international community for the Somaliland elections. The NEC will use the funds for conducting awareness campaigns, training of election observers and other staff and for logistics.
The rest of the British money will be spent on observers coming from the Electoral Institute of South Africa and Inter-group Africa.
Wickstead expressed the hope that Somaliland’s Presidential elections would be a step forward for the strengthening of democracy in Somaliland.
He added that he hoped a political entity would be established in Southern Somalia to usher in favorable conditions for opening a dialogue between the two sides, Somalia and Somaliland.