Piloting the new BRIDGE Module on Strategic Planning

Staff of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of Lesotho gathered in Maseru from 9 to 13 May for a five-day BRIDGE workshop on strategic planning for electoral management. The workshop took place in the context of the IEC’s engagement to develop a new strategic plan foreseen to guide its work in the coming years. Participants included directors, managers and officers from both headquarters and district offices to explore concepts and processes for EMB strategic planning.

The workshop also served to pilot Part 1 of the newly designed module named Strategic Planning for Electoral Management under the new Version 3 of the BRIDGE curriculum. With a theoretical focus, the Part 1 of the module aims to:

1. familiarize the EMB’s Executive Management with the steps, concepts and methodologies of strategic planning as a management tool that can enhance the performance of its mandated functions;
2. make the Executive Management appreciate how the applicability of strategic planning concepts and methodologies to the EMB’s electoral management functions can ultimately help strengthening its planning and operational capacities;
3. provide the EMB’s Executive Management with an understanding of how, through a structured, long-ranging strategic planning process, it can reach fundamental decisions and implement key strategic actions to help determine the essence of what the EMB is, what it does and how it does it; and
4. equip the Executive Management of the EMB with sufficient knowledge to make an informed decision on whether or not formally commit the EMB to a multi-year strategic planning process.

The workshop was facilitated by Mr. Zefanias Matsimbe (Accrediting Facilitator), Mrs. Lydia Macheli (Workshop Facilitator) and Mr. Samuel Atuobi (Workshop Facilitator). Mr. Antonio Spinelli, who has developed the new module, served as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) in the workshop. The “End of Course Evaluation” revealed the overall satisfaction of the participants on the BRIDGE methodology, content administered and the facilitation process. Participants performed very well with a high level of professionalism and enthusiasm throughout the course. They also manifested their readiness to embark on the strategic planning design.

The workshop was organized by International IDEA in collaboration with the AU Department of Political Affairs in the context of the AU-IDEA Joint Activity Plan (JAP) and was financed by the Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

The new Strategic Planning for Electoral Management module will be released on the BRIDGE website in June.