A large number of EVMs (electronic voting machines) manufactured by Bharat Electronics Ltd. were used by Namibia in its just concluded Presidential and national elections.
The public sector defence electronics company said it supplied 5,850 customised EVMs to the Electoral Commission of Namibia in three batches, along with battery packs, tabulators, printers and other accessories.
Namibia recently became the first African nation to adopt electronic voting during the elections of November 28 and 29. The event was closely watched by the global community as well as the African Union and the South African Development Council. The election results were announced by the ECN on December 1.
“ECN has mailed a letter of appreciation to BEL for the timely delivery of EVMs and the technical support it provided at all stages. SADC has congratulated Namibia on becoming the first African nation to use electronic voting and wished that it would be emulated by other African nations,” an official statement said.
The EVMs, made in BEL’s Bengaluru unit, are a small civil part of the defence PSU’s product portfolio. BEL mainly supplies radars, communication and network devices and sensors among others for the Armed Forces.
BEL sent its teams of engineers and technicians to Namibia on three occasions this year, including the by-elections and pre-poll verifications. Ahead of the general elections, a 30-member technical team led by Krishna Kumar P., Additional General Manager, was in Namibia from November 21 to 30, working with its officials across 14 regions throughout the process and until the results were tabulated, the release said.
