The Fijian Elections Office (FEO) for the first time is participating in a Global Exhibition on ‘Best Practices in Voter Education and Use of

Technology in Elections’ in New Delhi, India which commenced on January 14, 2016.

The event is hosted by the Election Commission of India (ECI) in partnership with UNDP India and includes exhibitors from Election

Management Bodies (EMBs) namely Maldives, Kharkaztan, Jammu, Kashmir, Australia, Bangladesh, Fiji and India.

The four days of exhibition includes cultural events, street theatres, mock drills, dance and song performances, quizzes and games, art competitions, performances by icons of the ECI, musical shows and displays of best practices by the regional and national election machineries in India and other participating EMBs.

The exhibition is taking place at Central Park in Cannaught Place which is the heart of Delhi and is likely to attract 15,000 persons per day from various target groups namely women, youth, persons with special needs and the marginalised groups.

The FEO is showcasing its voter awareness materials from the 2014 General Election including a mock voting exercise, displays of brochures, publications, posters, pocket calendars, FEO merchandise, banners and audio-visual content.

Supervisor of Elections Mohammed Saneem said the exhibition would promote the exchange of information and experiences on best practices between EMBs and the FEO. The FEO will capitalise on this opportunity as it plans its voter awareness programmes for the next General Election.

“We are privileged to be a part of this event as we believe our voter awareness programmes for the 2014 General Election can be useful platform for other EMBs to develop similar programmes and is also an opportunity for us to learn from the world’s largest democracy,” he said.

Mr Saneem acknowledged the ongoing collaboration with UNDP.

“This was the second collaboration between the two organisations and the FEO looks forward to strengthening its relations with UNDP.”

The FEO expresses its sincere appreciation to Fiji’s students, Abdullah Shorab and Kristi Kaajal currently studying in India for voluntarily supporting the FEO in the setup and management of the FEOs booth at the exhibition.

Meanwhile, the ECI celebrates its Foundation Day, as the National Voters’ Day on January 25 every year to inspire more young voters to participate in the electoral process.

The Global Exhibition is taking place ahead of the National Voters’ Day celebrations and is marked to support the initiatives of EMBs in the field of voter education in ensuring that voters are prepared to participate fully in the electoral process.

Source: Fijian Elections Office
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