United Nations Radio

Voters in the West African nation of Guinea Bissau took to the polls for parliamentary elections on Sunday.

According to the UN office in the country, the process went smoothly and the results could be announced as early as this week.

A former Portuguese colony, Guinea Bissau lately has been used as a hub for drug trafficking which was a major campaign issue.

For more on the vote, UN Radio's Derrick Mbatha spoke on the line to Guinea Bissau with the spokesman of the UN office there, Vladimir Monteiro.

VLADIMIR:About 21 parties and coalitions were running during the elections, and the process ran very, very well. The electoral campaign was a very civic moment; the elections yesterday as well took place in a very good environment.

DERRICK:How was the turnout? How many people participated in the voting?

VLADIMIR:We had about 75 to 80 percent, and women and youth participation was very important. Women participated as voters, but they were also very active as agents working for the polling stations.

DERRICK: How many voters does Guinea Bissau have?

VLADIMIR:About 550, 000 something like that.

DERRICK:You may be aware of the allegations that politicians in Guinea Bissau are being funded by drug money. Has this been a serious issue in the elections?

VLADIMIR:Well, during the campaign, the main important parties stressed this issue. It was one of them, apart from food security, employment, payment of salaries on a regular basis. But as for drug trafficking, it was a focus. We, the UN, we don't have any proof of who is involved, but what we can say is it is one of the future challenges to be addressed by Guinea Bissau's new government.

DERRICK:Talking about that: Do you expect that this election is going to have an impact in tackling this problem of drug trafficking?

VLADIMIR:Yes, we hope so. We have this security sector reform. The security sector reform is about also fighting drug trafficking using national resources but also counting on international support. The country already has regional support from ECOWAS, an organization that held a very important conference last month in Praia, Cape Verde, a meeting backed by the UN. So the next government of Guinea Bissau will have this challenge, drug trafficking, which in fact could be damageable for the country and also for the region. But as we used to say, as the UNODC stressed in its report, it's a problem that affects the whole region.

DERRICK:The whole region of West Africa, right?

VLADIMIR:Yes.

DERRICK:Now, what is happening after the voting? When can we expect the results to be announced?

VLADIMIR:Maybe this week we'll have the announcement of the results.

DERRICK:Yes. Just to conclude: How is the UN helping Guinea Bissau cope with its challenges?

VLADIMIR: The UN helped Guinea Bissau by funding this electoral process. UNDP contributed with $600,000. The Peacebuilding Fund contributed with $1.3 million. You also have the other contributions from the European Union and bilateral donors. Guinea Bissau will be supported also by other UN agencies, Peacebuilding Commission, UNODC, in tackling the drug issues; UNDP and other UN agencies on development or intervening in social areas like education. The UN, as well as the whole international community, is backing Guinea Bissau, which is one of the poorest countries in the world.

UN Radio's Derrick Mbatha spoke on the line to Guinea Bissau with the spokesman of the UN office there, Vladimir Monteiro.

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