AU-RECs/RMs.Decl Page 4 - strengthen election observation by deploying missions with adequate strength ahead of the election, with a view to having a more comprehensive view of the situation and making, if need be, recommendations to the stakeholders to guarantee the transparency of the electoral process; - effectively combine the resources of the AU and the competent regional organizations, including the deployment of joint evaluation and electoral observation missions; - undertake, whenever required, preventive deployments of peace support operations; and - ensure that Africa, through the missions deployed on the ground, is in a position to speak with one voice, with the necessary authority and objectivity, on the transparency of electoral processes and ensure that these processes are fully owned by Africa. In order to delve further into this issue and submit recommendations to the competent AU organs, we agreed to organize, as soon as possible, a seminar on electoral related conflicts and the challenges they pose for peace and security in Africa. We have requested the AU Commission, in collaboration with COMESA and SADC Secretariats, to prepare a concept note to this effect. Financing Peace and Security Efforts in Africa In considering the constraints to our efforts, we noted that financing constitutes one of the greatest difficulties facing the AU and the Regional Mechanisms. Our organizations are almost exclusively dependent on the resources provided by our partners. Clearly, this is a deplorable situation: as much as it is important to mobilize the support of the international community towards the peace efforts made in the continent, it is equally crucial for Africa to endow itself with the means to successfully implement the ambitious agenda it has set for herself. We reiterate our gratitude to our partners and urge them to continue to provide their assistance, and express our full support for the efforts invested by the AU towards the financing, through United Nations assessed contributions, of peace support operations undertaken by the AU or under its authority, with the consent of the Security Council, as well as the establishment of a facility that would complement the Africa Peace Facility established by the European Union (EU) at the request of the AU. At the same time, we underscore the imperative need for African States to contribute more significantly to the financing of the activities undertaken by the AU and the Regional Mechanisms in the area of peace and security, through a system of assessed contributions or alternative sources of financing. In doing so, the objective is for Africa to further demonstrate its political will to rid the continent of the scourge of conflicts, effectively take ownership of efforts deployed in this respect, and ensure their sustainability.