Expiry of Terms and Call for Nominations of Members to the Africa Scout Committee

During the 18th Africa Scout Conference, four (4) of the eight (8) current members of the Africa Scout Committee will have completed their term which started in 2012. The retiring members are:

1. Mr. Victor Atipagah (Ghana)
2. Mr. Sanda Rasoamahenina (Madagascar)
3. Mr. Morris Moses (Zimbabwe, co-opted to replace Mr. Mathias Wanyela)
4. Ms. Zodwa Treasure Gama (Eswatini, co-opted to replace Mr. Winston Adams)

Elections will be held at the conference to fill the resulting vacancies. Delegates of member National Scout Organizations (NSOs) in good standing with the World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM) will elect, from the list of candidates endorsed by their mother NSOs and the Africa Scout Committee, four (4) voting members for a period of six (6) year (2022-2028).

While Mr. Victor Atipagah and Mr. Sanda Rasoamahenina can only be eligible for re-election after a three-year lapse [cf. Art. VI,1(c) of the Constitution of the Africa Scout Region], Mr. Morris Moses and Ms. Zodwa Treasure Gama are eligible for election and, if elected, they will be eligible to serve a full six-year term [cf. Art. VI,2(c) of the Constitution of the Africa Scout Region]. However, eligible outgoing members willing to stand for the election must be re-nominated by a member NSO, following the same procedure as new candidates.

In considering candidates for nominations, NSOs are reminded to consider the following:

• Role Description of a Member of the Africa Scout Committee (18ASConf2022Doc4).
• The nominations should be submitted by a member NSO that is in good standing with WOSM (cf. Art. VII, 3 of WOSM Constitution). Any NSO which is provisionally suspended from WOSM membership will have its nominated candidate removed from the ballot paper if it is not returned to good standing with WOSM at the time of the opening session of the conference.
• In no case shall more than one voting member from any one NSO serve on the Committee in any one period [Art. VI.1(b) of the Constitution of the Africa Scout Region]. Therefore, candidates from the following member NSOs are not eligible to run for the 2022 elections, as each of them already has one sitting member on the Committee who will continue for another 3 years: Botswana Scouts Association, Ethiopia Scout Association, Association des Scouts du Burundi and Scoutisme Béninois.
• Members of the Africa Scout Committee do not represent any “particular” member NSO or zone. Therefore, a Conflict of Interest Policy has been developed which is also applicable to candidates for Africa Scout Committee election (cf. 18ASConf2022Doc5, Nomination Form for the Africa Scout Committee Elections).
• As one of WOSM’s fundamental purposes is to promote unity of the Scout Movement throughout the world (Article IV.2 of WOSM Constitution), the Africa Scout Committee invites all member NSOs to keep in mind the desirability of zonal balance in nominating candidates for membership of the Committee.
• In accordance with the Strategy for Scouting and in particular the objectives on youth involvement in the decision-making process and the importance of gender equality, NSOs are strongly encouraged to nominate young people of less than 30 years of age, at the time of the Conference, as well as female as candidates.
• All candidates are kindly reminded to act according to the values of Scouting when promoting their candidature. Any actions that may be perceived as inappropriate or extravagant, could be viewed negatively by the Africa Scout Committee and/or by Africa Scout Conference at the time of voting for elections.

We would like to emphasise the need and importance of selecting good nominees who will be able to contribute effectively to the work of the Region, reflect the diversity of the Region, involving different categories of associations from across the whole Region.

Should your NSO wish to nominate a member to the Africa Scout Committee, please ensure that the attached nomination form (18ASConf2022Doc5) is duly filled and submitted to the World Scout Bureau Africa Support Centre in digital format only, on africaconference@scout.org with a copy to africa@scout.org, no later than 28th June 2022 23:59 GMT+3[cf. Art. VI,3 (a & b) of the Constitution of the Africa Scout Region].

The nomination form has four sections that should be sent together. The World Scout Bureau Africa Support Centre will send a confirmation of receipt to the International Commissioners of the nominating NSOs upon receiving a nomination.

Applications which are received after the deadline or which are incomplete (do not include all the required sections) will be discarded.

After the closing date for receiving nominations and clearance of the list of candidates by the Africa Scout Committee, a Conference Document will be compiled and released to all member NSOs no later than 14 July 2022.

Should you have any further questions regarding the procedure for nomination to the Africa Scout Committee or the enclosed forms, please contact the World Scout Bureau Africa Support Centre on africaconference@scout.org with a copy to africa@scout.org.

Enclosed:

• 18ASConf2022Doc4: Role Description of a Member of the Africa Scout Committee / Description du rôle de membre du Comité Africain du Scoutisme
• 18ASConf2022Doc5: Nomination Form for the Africa Scout Committee Elections / Formulaire de nomination pour les élections du Comité Africain du Scoutisme