The African Union (AU) has deployed an observation mission to Cape Verde for the country’s presidential polls scheduled for March 20, an AU statement said on Wednesday .

According to the statement, the mission comprising 20 short-term observers is led by Zainabou Sylvie Kayitesi, former chairperson of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

“The AU observers are set to arrive in Praia, Cape Verde and will remain in the country until March 24,’’ it stated.

It added that they would be deployed throughout the electoral constituencies of the country to monitor the electoral process.

Cape Verde is an island country in the central Atlantic Ocean, located 570 km off the coast of Western Africa.

Its President, Jorge Carlos Fonseca, a former university professor, was elected in 2011.

(Xinhua/NAN)