Guinea - June 2025

On 26 June, authorities in Guinea presented a draft constitution that will be submitted to a referendum on 21 September. The proposed text extends the presidential term from five to seven years, renewable once, introduces a bicameral legislature with a new Senate, and creates a special court to try high-ranking officials for crimes committed in office. It also elevates eight national languages (including Susa, Fulani, Malinke, and Kissi) to official status alongside French and mandates a minimum 30 per cent quota for women in elected and leadership roles. While the transition charter bars junta members from running in elections, it remains unclear whether transitional president Mamadi Doumbouya will stand. Critics accuse the junta of using the reform process to entrench power, pointing to the removal of provisions in the initial draft that explicitly barred lifetime presidencies and strictly limited constitutional revisions.

Sources: The Office of the President – Guinea, Jeune Afrique (1), Jeune Afrique (2), Barron’s, Constitution Net

On 14 June, Guinea’s transitional president Mamady Doumbouya issued a decree creating a new elections authority ahead of the 21 September constitutional referendum. The new Direction Générale des Élections (DGE), placed under the authority of the Minister responsible for Territorial Administration, will manage political votes, referendums, and the biometric voter roll, while also helping establish a special election security force. Its director will be appointed by presidential decree. Critics warn the body lacks independence and could facilitate executive control of the process. Former bar association president Mohamed Traoré described the move as consolidating a ‘partisan administration’ that acts as both ‘judge and party.’ Others warned it paves the way for Doumbouya’s possible candidacy despite prior pledges not to run. The decree represents a break from prior efforts since 2010 to separate electoral management from state oversight and has intensified concerns over the credibility of Guinea’s upcoming elections. 

Sources: Barron’s, Jeune Afrique (1), Jeune Afrique (2), Mohamed Traoré (Facebook)