Alex Paila

Voter Education and Public Relations Officer
National Electoral Commission, Sierra Leone
Focus Area(s)
Elections
Critical Tasks
Voter registration
Training
Recruitment
Election security
Election schedules
Boundary delimitation/districting
Interviewers
Ashley McCants
Country of Reform
Sierra Leone
Town/City
Bo District
Country
Sierra Leone
Date of Interview
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Abstract

Alex Paila discusses various aspects of national and local election management in Sierra Leone during 2007 and 2008. These areas include the recruitment, training, evaluation and monitoring of election staff; election security; voter registration, audits and curtailment of voter fraud; information dissemination, media relations and enfranchisement of marginalized groups; and financial and logistical constraints and concerns.  He also emphasizes cooperation with community-based civilian organizations as key for information dissemination and higher voter turnouts, and he stresses relations with international organizations to improve workers’ training and monitoring, and secure funding. Paila also speaks about the issues of districting and determining electoral timetables.  Finally, he reflects upon some of the challenges faced by Sierra Leone during the elections in 2007 and 2008, as well as possible hurdles that the country may face in the future.    

Full Interview

84 MB
Alex Paila - Full Interview
Profile

At the time of the interview, Alex Paila was the voter education and public relations officer at the National Electoral Commission in Sierra Leone. Prior to that, he worked as a journalist for various newspapers, including the Ceylon Times and the Spectator. He was also employed, first as a reporter and then as deputy news editor, at the Sierra Leone Broadcast Service. Paila holds a bachelor’s degree in mass communication. 

Keywords
Voter Registration
voter fraud
voter education
vote counting
UN Policies
training
staff performance
rural voter registration
results declaration
registration audit
recruitment
polling supplies
monitoring
media relations
enfranchising marginalized groups
election security
election schedule
Election Management Body
Donor Relations
dispute resolution
communications
codes of conduct
Not specified