Election Commission (EC) has received formal approval to initiate voter registration and issue national identity cards (NIDs) for Bangladeshi expatriates in five additional countries, including the United States.
Alongside the US, the countries that received consent are the Maldives, Jordan, South Africa, and Oman. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs granted the approval via an official letter sent to the EC on Wednesday, confirming that Los Angeles has been designated as the voter registration and NID issuance centre in the United States.
Signed by Senior Assistant Secretary Shakera Ahmed, the letter instructed the EC to take necessary steps to begin implementation in the approved countries.
This move follows an earlier request made on July 2 by Md Abdul Momin Sarkar, Director (Registration and Expatriates) at the EC’s National Identity Registration Division, seeking consent to expand registration activities abroad. The EC has formulated a comprehensive plan to enrol Bangladeshi citizens in 40 countries.
With the latest approval, the number of countries where voter registration and NID services have been initiated now includes the UAE, Saudi Arabia, the UK, Italy, Kuwait, Qatar, Malaysia, Australia, Canada, and the five newly approved countries.
Among the remaining 31 countries, the EC has requested expedited clearance for several, including Turkey, Egypt, and France. According to the letter, Japan received approval on May 25, and registration activities are scheduled to begin there by July 15.
Director General of the National Identity Registration Division, ASM Humayun Kabir, confirmed that preparations are already underway. “We have written to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as we are ready to start voter registration and issuance of national identity cards in eight countries. Work has already been started in this regard,” he said.
EC officials reported that approximately 47,032 expatriates have so far applied for registration from countries where the service is active. Of these, biometric data for 29,563 individuals have been collected, and 20,451 applicants have been approved as voters. Meanwhile, 3,677 applications have been rejected.
Ask ChatGPT