Uganda’s first election to use biometric polling is fast approaching, and its Electoral Commission is looking to Smartmatic to ensure that its technical aspects proceed accordingly.
The company’s role in this election is extensive. Smartmatic has provided the main system to store and mange voter data—both biometric and biographic—and is also working to synchronize that data with the country’s national ID database. The company is also providing all of the software and hardware needed for the biometric voter verification system, including over 30,000 scanners that must be deployed at almost as many polling stations.
Of course, Smartmatic has extensive experience providing this kind of technology for similar projects elsewhere in the world, and the company is confident in its offerings. Commenting on the Uganda project in a statement, Smartmatic Sales VP for Africa Dr. Khodr Akil expressed the company’s pride in “helping Uganda take this step forward,” noting that biometric technology offers “an extremely efficient tool to improve election transparency and facilitate polling station management.”
For their part, the authorities at Uganda’s Electoral Commission appear to be excited about the technology, with EC Secretary Sam Rwakoojo asserting that by using biometric voter verification, “we will ensure the principle of ‘one voter – one vote’ in Uganda.
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February 8, 2016 – by Alex Perala
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