Kenya is using cutting-edge technology to help increase confidence in democracy -- facial recognition software and thumbprint scanners are used to issue voter IDs that help guarantee each citizen a voice in the electoral process. USAID coordinates support for this pilot project with 11 other donors.
Today we visited an innovative, biometric voter registration site designed to strengthen the electoral system ahead of the August constitutional referendum.
With support from USAID, Kenya’s Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC) is using the latest technology — webcams, thumbprint scanners and light-weight printers, all solar-powered so they’re not reliant on the grid — to protect the integrity of the registration process.
Of Kenya’s 210 constituencies, 18 are piloting this electronic registration system. So far, 1.5 million Kenyans have electronically registered and received their voter ID cards at pilot sites throughout the country.
The violence that followed Kenya’s 2007 presidential election highlighted the need for immediate election reform. That’s why we’re making these important investments now. In addition to the biometric registration technology, USAID is building the capacity of the new IIEC secretariat, designing and implementing a new election results management system, providing communication equipment, and supporting civic education.
Voter registration is key to a healthy democracy. People need to know that their votes count.
This is a beautiful initiative and I’d like to know more about the possibility of taking it to scale and maintaining such a system in the longer term. I have done significant work on strengthening democracy in Madagascar through civic education, and the issue of voter registration is one that has long plagued the Malagasy system too. In light of the protracted political crisis there, the elections slated for later this year and the upcoming referendum to revise the constitution, this is an ideal time to take action to help ensure democracy is strengthened there as well. But where will the money come from for Kenya and other countries to adopt such a system for all constituencies and to maintain or renew the material and human resources required to keep a system like this practicable in these countries into the future?
Where possible, Dr. Shah, would you please link the blog entries to related websites or online documents to provide further information to interested parties?
Thank you for these entries and your excellent work at USAID.
I appreciate the opportunity to communicate with Dr. Shah directly. Election Reform is the center piece of democratic systems strengthening. Would be nice to see where election reform activities are being carried out by USAID…
We are impressed by this patnership.
However, efforts should be made to automate the whole voting process.
Although we might end up cleaning the voters’ register, we have always known problems always occur during the actual voting, counting/tallying, data transmission and announcement of results thereof.
Voters from the diaspora should also be facilitated to vote elecronically.
I therefore envisage acomplete electronic voting system to be in place before the Dec 2012 elections.
Kiiva
i like this suggestion and i know it will help Ghanaians in this 2012 election.
thank you
Our country Papua New Guinea is looking into the possibility of introducing biometric registration. I would very much appreciate if you could provide how you are doing your pilot project, especially on the challenges and successes you are experiencing
Isaiah, you can find reports about our projects on our website at https://dec.usaid.gov/dec/home/Default.aspx. We suggest you searching for “Kenya Election” documents in our database.