Bahamas new biometric voter card ready next month, says official

The Parliamentary Commissioner of the Bahamas, Harrison Thompson, says issuance of the country’s new biometric voter card is likely to begin by mid next month.

The official told Eyewitness News that efforts are far advanced on the project and the card supplier is expected in the country in the days ahead to finalize work.

“We expect the vendors for the biometric card to be in town by next week to start to finalize some plans for the biometric cards,” Thompson said.

“But we’ll be ready if the Prime Minister calls at any time. If the biometric card is not quite ready, we continue with the purple card.”

Security printing and identity firm Canadian Bank Note (CBN) is the producer of the new biometric voter card which is a novelty in the Parliamentary Elections Bill.

According to the government, the idea is to modernize voter registration by replacing the old system that was error-prone and out of touch with changing technological realities.

The biometric voter card idea sparked divergent views among lawmakers and members of the general public, but Thompson says efforts will continue in terms of creating awareness on the usefulness of the card.

“It’s moving progressively slow, but we expect that it will ramp up as we move into the end of January and February. We’re doing some Public Service Announcements and trying to get the public encouraged to come and sign up for the cards,” Thompson mentioned.

While the government hopes for impressive adoption, the card shall not be compulsory, and those who do not have it can use any other government-issued ID on voting day.

In December last year, Thompson, said they had met with CBN officials some weeks earlier and they promised to be back this month to finalize the setting up of the card production facility.

“We expect no later than the middle of February. We are pushing for the end of January, but no later than the middle of February to be able to issue these cards,” he said as quoted by The Nassau Guardian.

Citizens will not be required to submit new biometric data as the Parliamentary Registration Department (PRD) says it will rely on information used to issue biometric passports.

The Minister of National Security, Wayne Munroe, who has jurisdiction over the PRD, last June, urged citizens to go for the card as snap elections could be called. He praised the quality of polycarbonate card saying it will be very easy to obtain by those who already have a passport.

Article Topics

Bahamas  |  biometrics  |  Canadian Bank Note Company  |  Caribbean  |  digital ID  |  identity document  |  legislation  |  voter identification