PSC/PR/COMM.1(CDVIII) Page 2 elected bodies. Council commends the President of the transition, the Prime Minister and other stakeholders for their efforts and commitment; 6. Expresses its appreciation to ECOWAS and its Member States, including Nigeria and other countries of the region, as well as to the Economic and Monetary Union of West Africa (UEMOA), for their generous contributions, in the spirit of African solidarity, to the financing of the electoral process. Council also expresses its gratitude to the United Kingdom, Timor Leste and the EU for their financial support to the electoral process. Council notes with appreciation the technical support provided by the Commission with the organization, at the request of the National Electoral Commission (CNE), of a training workshop for members of the CNE and other support measures envisaged, in particular the development of a communication strategy on the electoral process and the deployment of observers; 7. Calls on the transitional authorities, the political parties, the army and all other stakeholders to contribute positively to the creation of conditions propitious to the peaceful conduct of the electoral process. Council further calls on all Bissau Guinean actors to refrain from any act that could undermine the electoral process, and expresses its readiness to hold accountable any perpetrator of such act; 8. Expresses concern at the acts of violence registered in recent months against both Bissau-Guinean citizens and foreigners, repeated violations of human rights and the persistence of the culture of impunity in Guinea-Bissau. In this context, Council calls on Bissau-Guinean authorities to take, without delay, all necessary measures for the perpetrators of these acts to be identified and punished. Council further requests the Transitional Government and all other stakeholders in Guinea-Bissau, in particular the defense and security forces, to assume their responsibilities and make every effort to ensure the safety and protection of people and goods, including foreign nationals. Council warns all those involved in these acts that they will be held accountable and notes, in this respect, the relevant provisions of the presidential statement adopted by the UN Security Council, on 9 December 2013; 9. Stresses the need for more sustained efforts by the Bissau-Guinean actors to ensure the reform of the defense and security sector (RSDS), as a prerequisite for the sustainable promotion of democracy and the rule of law in Guinea-Bissau. Council commends ECOWAS for its support to this process, including through the renovation of military barracks. Council encourages other partners to lend their support to this reform; 10. Calls upon the AU Member States and the international community as a whole, in coordination with ECOWAS, to provide the needed support to the ECOWAS Mission in GuineaBissau (ECOMIB), including through its strengthening, to enable it to fulfill its mandate effectively, notably securing the electoral process; 11. Stresses the need for sustained international support to facilitate the post-conflict reconstruction and development process in Guinea-Bissau. Council calls on the Commission to initiate the necessary measures to ensure that Guinea-Bissau is included on the list of the