The AFRINIC Board is required to appoint a Nomination Committee (NomCom) every year, in terms of article 9 of the Bylaws https://afrinic.net/bylaws#nomcom.

On behalf of the Board, I hereby call for volunteers from the community to fill three open positions on the 2020 NomCom. If you are interested in serving on the 2020 NomCom, then please send your expression of interest, including a short biography, by email to legal at afrinic dot net by 10 February 2020.

However, as per Article 9.1 of the Bylaws, no person domiciled in a region whose Board seat is open for renewal may be a member of the Nomcom.

The duties of the NomCom, and the elections to be held are described below.

Election process and guidelines

The current version of the Board election process and guidelines are published at https://afrinic.net/election-process/board/2020. It provides additional information about NomCom responsibilities, the election process, and timelines.

Nomcom Composition and Responsibilities:

According to Section 9 of the AFRINIC by-laws, a Nominations Committee (NomCom) appointed by the Board must work to ensure that appropriate candidates are nominated to contest for open seats and that all elections are successfully conducted according to current procedures.

The AFRINIC Bylaws state that NomCom must have four members, appointed by the Board. The Board’s practice is to appoint the four members as follows;

• One member selected from within the AFRINIC Board;
• Three members selected by the AFRINIC Board from the community.

In terms of section 9.1 of the Bylaws:

• No candidate for election to the Board may be a member of the NomCom;
• No person domiciled in a region whose Board seat is open for renewal may be a member of the NomCom; this means that the 2020 NomCom may not include people who reside in the Indian Ocean, East Africa  and Central Africa regions.

Responsibilities of the NomCom are defined in section 9 of the AFRINIC Bylaws and include the following:

• Report to the Board and follow guidelines set by the Board;
• Call for candidates for all open positions;
• Prescribe criteria and qualifications for eligibility to stand for election;
• Interview candidates, if appropriate, prior to finalising the slate of candidates;
• Finalise the list of candidates for every election;
• Supervise the conduct of the polls by the Election Committee on election day.

The Board further expects NomCom members to:

• be neutral; to have no interest in the results of the elections;
• be trusted members of the AFRINIC community;
• have good knowledge of the AFRINIC business environment;
• preferably possess prior NomCom experience in the I* ecosystem;
• do their best to fulfil their responsibilities.

NomCom members do not receive any remuneration.

AFRINIC staff will provide logistical support to the NomCom throughout their mandate. Such support includes publication of the list of nominees, a compilation of comments, mailing list moderation, website update, communication with nominees and other duties pertaining to the roles and responsibilities of the NomCom. Travel support will be provided for the NomCom Chair to attend the AGMM at which the elections are held.

Election to be held at the AGMM in June 2020:

AFRINIC Board of Directors elections:

The following Board seats are up for election by the AFRINIC Membership in 2020:

• Seat 3 (Indian Ocean), to serve a three-year term from mid-2020 to mid-2023. This seat is currently held by Mr Subramanian Moonesamy
• Seat 4 (Central Africa), to serve a three-year term from mid-2020 to mid-2023. This seat is currently held by Dr Christian D. Bope
• Seat 6 (Eastern Africa), to serve a one-year term from mid-2020 to mid-2021. This seat is currently vacant
• Seat 8 (non-regional), to serve a three-year term from mid-2020 to mid-2023. This seat is currently held by Mr Serge Illunga

Policy Development Working Group (PDWG):

One PDWG co-chair position is up for election by the Policy Development Working Group.The seat is currently filled by Mr Abdulkarim Oloyede. Terms begin and end during the public policy meeting where the election is held.

Governance Committee:

One Governance Committee position is up for election by the AFRINIC Membership, to serve a three-year term from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2023. The seat is currently held by Mr. Abdalla Omari.

NRO-NC/ASO-AC:

One NRO NC/ASO AC position is up for election by the AFRINIC Community, to serve a three-year term from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2023. The seat is currently held by Mukhangu Noah Maina.

How to Volunteer:

No person domiciled in a region whose Board seat is open for renewal may be a member of the NomCom; this means that the 2020 NomCom may not include people who reside in the Indian Ocean, Eastern Africa and Central Africa regions.

If you are interested in serving on the 2020 NomCom, then please send your expression of interest, including a short biography, by email to legal at afrinic dot net by 10 February 2020.

Eddy Kayihura

CEO, on behalf of the AFRINIC Board of Directors