Shuichi SAKAKIBARA, Charge d’Affaires a.i., of the Embassy of Japan, handed over materials related to the election to Secretary  Narendra Dahal, of the Election Commission of Nepal.  The Handing over Ceremony was held in the Election Commission Nepal (ECN), Kathmandu, in presence of Honorable Commissioners and other officials of Election Commission and the Government of Nepal, as well as the media.

On July 24, 2013, the Government of Japan committed to provide a grant of about one hundred and forty-nine million Japanese yen (approximately NRs.142,146,000) for the execution of the Project for Assistance to the Constituent Assembly Election, upon a request made  by the Government of Nepal to Japan.  By utilizing the grant, the election materials such as 20,000 larger sized ballot boxes for the proportional electoral process, 106,250 ballot box stickers, 831,250 security seals and 43,750 fences at polling centers were procured for the CA Election to be held on November 19, 2013. 

Japan, as a well wisher and development partner of Nepal, has, through this gesture, shown its commitment to investing in the peace initiative and democracy in Nepal.  In fact, investing in the peace initiative and in democracy is one of the three pillars of the Japanese development cooperation which is embedded in Japan’s ODA policy.  As a result, Japan has always been supportive of the establishment of democracy in Nepal.  Notable commitment of the Interim Election Government to hold a fair and free CA Election for the second time, on November 19, 2013, is expected to prove a national historic turning point.  With the massive number of eligible voters’ as well as large political parties’ participation, its success will play an instrumental role for the realization of Nepali people’s aspiration for democracy, peace and stability in Nepal. 

In 2012 Japan provided 25 servers and training for ECN’s IT related personnel. In addition to the grant for this, the second CA Election, 50 servers have been provided in 2013 through JICA to enhance the voters’ database management capacity of ECN for the election results. The EC Offices of 10 districts with no regular electricity supply will benefit from ten solar power panels also provided in 2013 for emergency energy back up.

According to a press release of Japanese Embassy, During the handing over ceremony, Sakakibara expressed that the Election Commission Nepal, responsible for administering the electoral process, will successfully manage the CA Election with the election materials, support and logistics made available by Japan.  Moreover, the support extended also signifies the ever-existing and growing friendship and ties between the governments of Japan and Nepal, as well as the strong people-to-people’s relations between both countries.