Abidjan, 12 February 2009 The identification and registration process has crossed the 4.6-million-person mark and has proceeded without any major incidents. This is an historic advance. If present trends continue, the operation can be completed in Spring 2009. UNOCI congratulates the Ivorian leaders and people for this remarkable progress.

In this perspective, it would be useful if the electoral timetable, which has five stages, can be established as soon as possible. This timetable is crucial, not only in order to maintain the present momentum, but also to allow for rational planning and thus avoid accumulating delays.

Available data allows us to envisage a rational timetable at this time. Here are the five incompressible phases and their approximate duration:

- 1.The provisional voters' list: the provisional voters' list will be available after the completion of the identification operation, therefore, in Spring 2009.

- 2.The definitive voters' list : the law provides a period of three months for the resolution of disputes regarding the provisional list in order to produce the definitive list, but the Permanent Consultative Framework, at its meeting in Ouagadougou on 24 January 2008, already envisaged a reduction of this period.

- 3.The production of identity cards and voters' cards: the amount of time set aside for this stage is six weeks.

- 4.The distribution of cards and equipping the 11,000 polling stations with electoral equipment and accessories: a few weeks are needed for this phase.

- 5.The presidential election campaign: at previous elections this phase lasted two weeks.

Naturally, it is understood that it is the responsibility of the Independent Electoral Commission to set the new timetable. In the interest of the Ivorian people as well as that of the international community, and also in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution No. 1865 of 27 January 2009, UNOCI is asking the IEC to publish a new electoral timetable without delay, so as not to compromise the dynamic of the peace process.

For their part, the international community and UNOCI will continue to provide their support in order to ensure the success of the peace process.