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Islamabad, July 22, 2008
USAID Provides $450,000 in Equipment for Electoral Rolls
Islamabad, July 22, 2008: USAID Pakistan Mission Director Anne Aarnes hands over computer equipment to the Secretary, Election Commission of Pakistan, Kanwar Dilshad. The $450,000 worth of hardware will help the ECP improve, update, and maintain Pakistan’s computerized electoral rolls. |
Islamabad, July 22, 2008: The United States Government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), today donated information technology hardware worth $450,000 to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). The technology will help the ECP improve, update, and maintain Pakistan's computerized electoral rolls.
"The importance of accurate electoral rolls cannot be overstated," said USAID Pakistan Mission Director Anne Aarnes. "The hardware USAID is providing will greatly improve the ECP's capacity to ensure the integrity of the electoral rolls."
The hardware, which is part of USAID's $18 million Pakistan Electoral Support Project, will be installed in the ECP's offices across Pakistan and will allow the Commission to make updates efficiently and accurately. USAID has also trained ECP's newly recruited information technology staff located at the ECP headquarters and at the four Provincial Election Commissioner offices. The training ensures that ECP has the in-house capacity to maintain and use the equipment.
Since 2006, USAID's Pakistan Electoral Support Project, implemented by the International Foundation for Election Systems, has worked closely with the ECP on voter registration issues. The project developed Pakistan's first computerized election rolls; designed training for 45,000 voter registration officials; and provided transparent ballot boxes for the 2008 national elections.
Since 2002, the U.S. Government, on behalf of the American people, has provided more than $2 billion to Pakistan to improve economic growth, education, health, and governance, and to assist with earthquake reconstruction.
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