500 database centres for regular update of voter list

More than five hundred permanent database centres at a cost of Tk 206.70 crore would be set up across the country to provide adequate infrastructures at upazila, district and divisional levels for regular maintaining and updating voter list with photographs.

Under the project, some 481 centres will be set up at upazila level while five regional centers at divisional level and 16 centres under the jurisdiction of police station.

To this effect, the Netherlands government and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) signed an agreement at Election Commission Secretariat yesterday.

Bangladesh, the Netherlands and the Department for International Development (DFID) are jointly funding the project titled “Construction of Upazila and Regional Server Stations for Electoral Database (CSSED).”

Bangladesh government is financing Tk 110.60 crore while the two development partners are providing Tk 96.10 crore for the implementation of the project to be completed within October 2010.

Netherlands Ambassador Bea ten Tusscher and UNDP Country Director Stefan Priesner signed the agreement on behalf of their sides.

Election Commissioners Muhammed Sohul Hussain and Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain were present at the signing ceremony.

Talking to newsmen, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda said the construction works at the upazila and divisional levels would start simultaneously from the middle of April.

The Public Works Department and the Local Government Engineering Department will implement the construction work in urban and rural areas respectively, he said.

"It would be easier to update the voter list after setting up the server centres," the CEC said.

"I am confident that this project will make a significant contribution to sustain the achievements of Bangladesh Election Commission, including the maintenance of the internationally acclaimed voter list with photo," said Dutch Ambassador Bea ten Tusscher.

"This project will strengthen the independence of Bangladesh Election Commission and enable the public to enquire about their voter registration and other electoral matters at the local level," said UNDP Country Director Stefan Priesner.