The IHEC 2012-2017 Strategic Planihec.iq/ihecftp/2014/plan-st/2012-2017en.pdf4 The IHEC 2012-2017 Strategic Plan objectives for this, which focuses on the capacity building of the

The Independent High Electoral

Commission IHEC

Strategic Plan 2012-2017 (Outline draft version 09/16/2014)

2 The IHEC 2012-2017 Strategic Plan

Table of Contents

Executive Summary ................................................................................................ 1

2. Introduction to the IHEC ...................................................................................... 5

3. The Strategic Planning Process of the IHEC ....................................................... 7

3.1 Strategic Planning Committee.................................................................................................................. 7

3.2 Organizational Vision ............................................................................................................................... 7

3.3 Mission Statement ................................................................................................................................... 8

3.4 Fundamental Values................................................................................................................................. 8

3.5 SWOT Analysis .......................................................................................................................................... 9

4. Goals and Objectives ........................................................................................ 10

4.1 Strategic Goals with Key objectives ........................................................................................................ 11

4.1.1 Institutional Development .............................................................................................................. 11

4.1.2 Human Rights .................................................................................................................................. 11

4.1.3 Civic Education ................................................................................................................................ 11

4.1.4 Technological Advancement Information Technology (IT) ............................................................. 12

4.1.5 Consultation with Stakeholders ...................................................................................................... 12

5 Implementation, Monitoring and Management of the Strategic Plan .................. 13

5.1. Leadership Commitment ....................................................................................................................... 13

5.2 Coordination among the Strategic Planning Committee and Technical Working Groups (TWG) .......... 13

5.3 Dissemination of the Strategic Plan ................................................................................................ 14

5.4 Website information on the Strategic Plan .................................................................................... 14

6. Analysis and prevention of risks ........................................................................ 15

6.1 Internal Risks .......................................................................................................................................... 15

6.2 External Risks ......................................................................................................................................... 15


1- Executive Summary Planning is considered to be a practical and scientific tool that includes procedures

and integrated methods that take into consideration the financial, human and time

factors to achieve the identified goals and objectives. Therefore, the IHEC has started

drafting a plan for its work during the remains of 2014 and the upcoming next three

years. The Strategic Planning Committee has drafted a preliminary plan according to

previously discussed, evaluated and adopted methods.

The strategic plan is considered to be a technical document which identifies the

strategic goals and facilitates its implementation. After careful studies the Committee

decided that the IHEC’s strategic plan should extend over five years. This plan

represents the road map for the IHEC, which it has to refer to periodically when

drafting the plans for upcoming electoral events to be managed by the IHEC, and its

day to day administrative functions.

On January 06-09, 2013 with the support from the International Foundation for

Electoral Systems (IFES), the IHEC conducted the Strategic Planning Induction

Workshop to target the IHEC Board of Commissioners (BoC), Directors of the IHEC

Departments, and GEOs Directors. The objective of the workshop was to lay down the

basis for all departments involved in the implementation of a Strategic Plan. The

workshop was the first step taken by the current IHEC administration to move in the

following directions: a) determining the IHEC’s long-ranging strategic direction as an

organization; and b) shaping and focusing the IHEC’s actions to fulfill this direction.

On February 17, 2013 the IHEC created the Strategic Planning Committee and

appointed its Members, as described in the Decisions of the Board of Commissioners

(BoC) for ordinary minutes, No (17) dated 17/02/2013, later it was adjusted with the

BoC decision No. 16 for the regular meeting 164 on 25/12/2013 to make Mr. Safaa Al-

Musawi to be the head of the committee.

A strategic plan is a product of team work, professionally dedicated to the

accomplishment of the strategic goals on the short, medium and long terms. The plan

commits members of the BoC to work diligently on accomplishing the goals within the

identified timelines, and it ensures that all departments will be diligent in working to

accomplish all identified goals.

The plan sets five years to accomplish all goals, and it includes the operational,

administrative and technical aspects of the IHEC’s work. It has adopted practical

methods to develop its financial and human resources functions, and it has identified


objectives for this, which focuses on the capacity building of the staff, legislating laws

and regulations that contribute to the stability and provision of work requirements

according to the circumstance the country is living and according to future electoral

events.

The plan also includes goals relating the constant improvement and updating of the

voters’ list, the full transition into the Continued Voters Registration (CVR) and

electronic voting in a near future, launching effective and inclusive awareness

campaigns and using advanced approached in the overall electoral work. It also

includes goals to develop relationships and cooperation with international and local

organizations interested in the electoral and democratic process. For this purpose the

plan identifies establishing of the IHEC Electoral Institute as one of its strategic

objectives, it also identifies the establishment of a modern print house as one of its

goals that should facilitate the work of the Commission, publishing documents and

publications for providing information on electoral process and raising public

awareness on democracy and elections.

The IHEC will cooperate with the Iraq Government, the Council of Representatives,

relevant ministries, political entities, as well as local and international organizations

to accomplish the strategic goals.

The IHEC hopes to succeed in accomplishing this humble work, and in serving the

people of Iraq by facilitating their fundamental right of suffrage and to manage fully

their democratic aspirations.


2. Introduction to the IHEC

The Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) is responsible for conducting all

elections and referendums in Iraq and implements these in accordance with policies

and procedures defined by the IHEC Board of Commissioners.

Established by the Council of Representatives (CoR) in May 2007, the IHEC is an

independent electoral authority consisting of nine members appointed by and under

the supervision of the CoR. The IHEC is comprised of eight permanent election

Commissioners and one Chief Electoral Officer (CEO). The CEO heads the IHEC

administration and is a non-voting member of the IHEC Board of Commissioners.

The IHEC has a headquarters office in Baghdad, 19 Governorate Electoral Offices

(GEOs) one in each governorate, and with two in Baghdad, and the Kurdistan Regional

Electoral Office (KREO) in Erbil.


The main functions of the IHEC are detailed in Article 4 of the IHEC Law No. (11) of

2007, giving the IHEC the authority to:

Establish and update the voter registry

Regulate registration and certification of parties for the purpose of contesting

elections

Regulate and certify candidate lists for elections

Accredit election observers, party and media agents

Adjudicate all electoral complaints and appeals (appealable only before a

special judicial electoral panel)

Certify tally procedures

Declare and certify election and referenda results (except the CoR results)

Set regulations and instructions preserving a fair electoral process

Certify the structure and senior appointments of the electoral administration

Set the financial policy for the IHEC. Under the management of the current BoC, the IHEC conducted four successful the

2013 Governorate Council Elections (GCE); the 2013 Kurdistan Region Parliamentary

Elections; the 2014 Council of Representative Election and the Iraq Kurdistan Region

Governorate Council Elections. All of these elections were observed by international

and domestics observers who stated that IHEC conducted these processes successfully

and with improved technical capacities.


The SP of the IHEC is a well thought out and widely consulted product

Goals and objectives are well aligned

with the vision and

mission of the IHEC

Owned by the Commisioners & Staff of the IHEC and with

the suppourt of the external stakeholders

Expected to bring the needed change in the organization

and strengthen democratic culture.

3. The Strategic Planning Process of the IHEC

3.1 Strategic Planning Committee

Upon the IHEC decision to draft a five-year strategic plan of the IHEC, the Strategic

Planning Committee was established to work directly on a specific timeline and

development of the strategic plan to be submitted to the BoC for approval.

The BoC decision was amended with the decision No. 16 for the regular meeting 164

on 25/12/2013 to make Mr. Safaa Al-Musawi to be the head of the committee and the

membership of the following gentlemen:

1- Safaa Lafta Al-Jabiri, Director of the Operations Department.

2- Omar Fakhri Al-Hadithi, the General Secretary for the BoC.

3- Adil Edan hamza, Acting Director of the Public Outreach Department.

The Strategic Planning Committee as a coordinating body shall assist the Board of

Commissioners (BOC) in ensuring that the IHEC´s management develops, executes,

and assesses the strategic planning for long-term institutional development and for

the effective management of the upcoming electoral events in Iraq.

In particular, the Committee shall:

Oversee the implementation of all the activities described in the Strategic Plan;

Address and resolve problematic areas during Strategic Plan implementation;

Submit periodic evaluation reports to the Board of Commissioners.


Mission, vision and values have been used as basis for the planning by the Committee

Members. The values envisioned by the IHEC have been considered as a roadmap for

professional and impartial administration of elections in Iraq.

3.2 Organizational Vision

The IHEC is committed to achieve high standards of impartiality, transparency,

professionalism and accountability, and to become a leading Electoral Management

Body (EMB) in the region, sharing its particular experience with other countries and

promoting cooperation with other EMBs.

3.3 Mission Statement

The IHEC is a professional institution that aims to contribute to the construction of a

new Iraq by fostering democracy through allowing Iraqi citizens to fully exercise their

right to vote, for which IHEC will register voters, organize, conduct and supervise

regular, free, fair and credible elections. It seeks to maximize voter turnout in an

inclusive and participatory manner, and to facilitate a clear understanding of all stages

of the electoral process to the citizens and all political parties involved in the electoral

process.

3.4 Fundamental Values

The IHEC believes that the accomplishment of its mission and vision is to be done

through fundamental values, which identify the Commission’s work and actions; these

values are the following:

Independence:

The Commission should not be subjected to any pressures or external interventions.

Impartiality:

The IHEC has to conduct its work without being biased to any party involved in the

electoral process.

Expertise:

The IHEC is working to ensure that it has a permanent, qualified and professional

staff, by building their capacity, skills, and using their electoral experience, to attain

international standards of expertise in the field of elections management.


Credibility:

The IHEC seeks to gain the trust and support of the Iraq people through providing

quality services according to the highest and measurable international standards.

Accountability:

The IHEC shall be accountable for its actions to all stakeholders and the Iraqi people.

Transparency:

The IHEC will ensure the legitimacy of any election in Iraq, by upholding the highest

levels of integrity during the management of the electoral process.

3.5 SWOT Analysis

The IHEC conducted an internal Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats

analysis SWOT during its Strategic Planning process, which served as the base for

identifying urgent areas of needs, which were later developed into the key objectives.

The SWOT findings are described below:


4. Goals and Objectives

The strategic goals are represented in the changes that should be made to direct the

IHEC toward actualizing its vision. They bridge the gap that has been identified, and

set specific objectives, which are to encourage creativity. They should be in line with

the IHEC’s mission, and the accomplishment of these objectives should bring the

Commission closer to achieving its vision. They should also address current priority

and critical. The objective may not be changed until the expected results are achieved.

1. The accumulated experiences and

high qualifications of the IHEC staff

2. Issuing regulations and procedures

by the Board of Commissioners

3. The availability of a database for the

voters’ record and a staff with

experience in data management and

data management software

4. The availability of international

support

1. The occupational instability

2. The weak infrastructure of the

IHEC

3. The inability of the budget to

cover some expenses

4. The political situation and its

negative influence on the IHEC

5. The lack of organizational

memory

1. Enhancing the external relations

with civil society organizations,

political entities, and media.

2. Using technology in the electoral

process

3. Opening up and exchanging

expertise with international

organizations

1. The lack of a stable electoral time schedule

2. The incompletion of the legislative structure for electoral laws

3. The inconsideration of qualification criteria in the distribution of some IHEC job positions

4. The security instability 5. The degraded electoral awareness of the

electoral stakeholders


Goals that are in line with the mission and vision and guiding principles should direct

all future work of the IHEC.

4.1 Strategic Goals with Key objectives

4.1.1 Institutional Development

The reorganization of the IHEC creating new structures and strengthening the existing

ones will help improve its capacity, leading to better services at various levels. The

Strategic Plan will also contribute towards ensuring more transparency in the IHEC

work. Moreover, the participation of voters and responsible attitude of political

entities will introduce and foster a more responsible political culture. Training and

capacity building also feature prominently in the Strategic Plan. All these elements

will lead to an improvement in the quality elections and democracy in Iraq.

Legal Framework

Registration of Voters

Election Operations

Election Complaints and Disputes Resolution

Restructuring of the IHEC

New Infrastructure, Logistics and Equipment for the IHEC National Office and

the Governorate Electoral Offices (GEOs)

Human Resources — Staffing and Compensation

Finance and Budget

Training, Research and Evaluation

4.1.2 Human Rights

The Strategic Plan will set goals dealing with marginalized groups of the society:

women, minorities and persons with disabilities. It is an entirely new dimension that

the IHEC has been gradually implementing in various recent elections in Iraq, which

brings a very strong element of respect for human rights and an institutional

approach to ensure improved representation of marginalized groups.

Marginalized Groups including: Women, Minorities and Persons with

Disabilities

Internally Displaced People (IDPs)

4.1.3 Civic Education

The IHEC under the Strategic Plan intends to go beyond traditional voter education;

and also to focus on civic education, which has much broader implications. Civic


education is not about how to cast a vote, but why to register and cast ones vote. It is

also about changing attitudes towards political culture in the country.

Electoral Institute

Participation of Voters/Civic and Voter Education

Inclusive and Informative Programs

Coordination with the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research

4.1.4 Technological Advancement Information Technology (IT)

This component has a very strong presence in the desired Strategic Plan:

computerized electoral voters list, biometric voter registration, comprehensive IT

functions on day to day basis, improved and multilingual website of the IHEC,

geographical information system, etc. Over a period of time the IHEC has opened up to

new ways of working and learning from others experiences including the use of

technology, as it was proven with high success during the last Council of

Representatives Elections (COR) on April 30, 2014.

Improving the quality of IT Systems

The IHEC´s IT Infrastructure

Data Entry Center (DEC)

Automated Voters Registration (AVR)

Continued Voter Registration (CVR)

4.1.5 Consultation with Stakeholders

As a key strategic decision the IHEC intends to launch a process of confidence building

through regular consultations with the external stakeholders. The Strategic Plan

wants to become the outcome of a participatory and consultative process, another

new dimension in the IHEC´s work, establishing a strong foundation for a free and

transparent electoral process.

Information Technology

Public Outreach and Interaction with Political Entities, Civil Society

Organizations and the Media

IHEC´s In-house Printing and Publication Capacity

Branding of the IHEC

Publicizing the BOC decisions to be posted on the IHEC´s website

Continuous Development and Improvement of the IHEC´s Website

Building and Strengthening cooperation with other EMBs in the Middle East

and Sharing the IHEC´s Experience

Domestic and International Elections Observation


5 Implementation, Monitoring and Management of the Strategic Plan

The following elements must be included in the process to ensure effective

implementation and monitoring framework: operational plans, actions matrix,

mechanisms and structures for monitoring progress, and to evaluate performance.

The Commission has, therefore, developed a detailed implementation plan as outlined

below.

5.1. Leadership Commitment

The involvement and commitment of the entire Board of Commissioners (BOC) is of

critical importance for the effective implementation of the Strategic Plan. This

commitment needs to be displayed visibly in several ways, including:

making public its commitment to the implementation of the Strategic Plan,

timely provision of resources needed for its implementation,

making use of the Strategic Plan to guide policy and decision making,

regularly communicating with the staff on the progress of the Strategic Plan,

and

monitoring and evaluation of the Strategic Plan implementation.

5.2 Coordination among the Strategic Planning Committee and Technical

Working Groups (TWG)

The Strategic Planning Committee will serve as a steering committee for all matters

related to the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the Strategic Plan.

Technical Working Groups based on each of the five Strategic Goals described in the

Plan and on the six Departmental Operational Plans, will be appointed and summoned

regularly to discuss specifics of each Goal and Operational Plan.

This coordination should include:

Regular meetings of the Strategic Committee to coordinate activities and to

keep abreast of the projects/activities being implemented

Regular update to the Commission on the Strategic Plan implementation status

Project implementation has to be well documented, regularly monitored, and

reported

Guarantee that there is an audit trail of the progress of the Strategic Plan.


5.3 Dissemination of the Strategic Plan

The IHEC intends to share its plan with a wide range of target groups including all the

Parliamentarians, members of the Governorates Councils, relevant Ministries, the

Presidential Office, the Prime Minister, relevant public offices at the national and

governorate levels. The IHEC will also share the Strategic Plan with other

stakeholders including political entities, national and international organizations, and

media.

5.4 Website information on the Strategic Plan

A specific window in the current bilingual Website of the IHEC has been created in

order to provide the information on the Strategic Plan. The IHEC by showing

remarkable openness placed the main document of the Plan on the website, which will

allow people to see the progress made on the Plan and send their queries to the IHEC.

It can help bridge the gap to a greater extent between the IHEC and the stakeholders


6. Analysis and prevention of risks

Assessing risks that threaten the implementation of any project is an important part

of the Strategic Planning process. Without understanding factors that could negatively

impact, delay or derail a project, the institution is taken off guard and unprepared for

the circumstances that now loom over the project. Not all risks are equal, however,

risks can come from factors that are outside the organization or they can come from

within the organization. These risks need to be identified and classified so that the

project can continue without being adversely affected.

6.1 Internal Risks

Any Strategic Planning team must identify and prioritize risks to the project at hand

that are internal to the organization. When looking internally, risks to the project may

involve the financial solvency of the company, the ability of the institution to have

required equipment, human and financial resources on hand in time to support the

project.

Inter-Personnel issues or unanticipated termination of a key staff member also can be

considered as internal risks to the project.

Internal risks can also involve infrastructure problems such as the availability of

servers, software, and IT support as well as more elementary situations such as the

lack of supply of materials on time, or lack of an effective internal communication

system. Obviously, the volatility of essential infrastructures will vary depending on

the location of the institution´s main office and regional offices.

Constant monitoring and identification of these risks will allow the IHEC to counter

internal risk which can cause institutional administrative backlash. The

modernization process initiated by the current BOC will also help to mitigate internal

difficulties during the electoral period and its operations.

6.2 External Risks

External risks are outside the control of the Strategic Planning team and its

organization. Therefore, the external risks are generally more difficult to predict and

control. Factors such as economic upheaval, political unrest, armed conflicts, urban

crime rates, citizen’s insecurity, natural disasters and other events may directly

impact the project's effectiveness. Some risk may be difficult to foresee and often

takes the organization by surprise because of a deficient analysis of external threats.

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The IHEC has evaluated in depth the risks that they can expect, as an electoral

management organization, regarding its national security and political instability. The

lessons learned by the IHEC, while conducting various successfully managed elections,

under difficult circumstances, allow identifying on time critical situations, in order to

adjust, change or to cancel proposed activities of this Strategic Plan due to the

contextual circumstances at hand, but without jeopardizing the IHCE´s fundamental

roles and responsibilities.

The IHEC will continue to comply with the Iraqi Government rules and regulations

especially related to the financial operations, in order to secure the financial safety of

the Commission, by preparing and submitting under the supervision of the BoC, its

operational and electoral budgets. The coordination with the Ministry of Finance will

be a key factor in achieving a prompt approval and ratification of the budget

allocations.

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