TDS Desk:

The Election Commission (EC) of Bangladesh has launched a three-year project titled “BALLOT” (Bangladesh Advancement for Credible, Inclusive and Transparent Elections) with support from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), aiming to strengthen the country’s electoral process ahead of the upcoming national elections.

As part of its commitment to the initiative, the Australian government has pledged $2 million in support, formalised through a MoU signing ceremony held on Wednesday (June 18).

The MoU was signed between the Australian High Commission in Bangladesh and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) under the framework of the BALLOT project.

The signing ceremony took place at the Election Commission headquarters in Dhaka.

The event was attended by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin, Australian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Susan Ryle, and UNDP Bangladesh Resident Representative Stefan Liller.

Following the meeting, EC Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed stated that the BALLOT project is estimated to cost $18.53 million over its three-year implementation period.

“The project is already underway,” he said.