Laxton Group to supply biometric voter registration kits for Zimbabwe elections

Laxton Group has been awarded a US$3.9 million contract from the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to supply Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits for registering voters in advance of the 2018 general elections, according to a report by VOA Zimbabwe.

The move comes more than a month after the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) completed field tests of biometric voter registration (BVR) kits from the two companies bidding for the contract ahead of next year’s elections and is set to present the evaluation report to the State Procurement Board (SPB).

The State Procurement Board selected Laxton Group over Germany’s Demalog Identification Systems, which submitted a US$5.5 million bid.

ZEC chairperson Rita Makarau said the agency is currently finalizing the agreement terms with Laxton Group.

“Our team is negotiating the terms of contract of supply with a team from the selected supplier,” Makarau said. “Once the terms are agreed upon we will then advise on the dates of delivery and date of commencement of the registration exercise.”

The initial tender called for 1,600 kits but the commission will reportedly need 3,000 kits, which includes 2,900 general kits and 100 districts kits.

Laxton Group has previously worked in other African countries, including Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea, Malawi and Mozambique.

The biometric voter registration process involves electronically capturing a person’s unique physical traits, such as their iris biometrics, to verify their identity.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  DERMALOG  |  elections  |  Laxton  |  voter registration  |  Zimbabwe