Mali’s army junta introduced on Monday it will postpone elections scheduled for February on account of technical causes, together with a dispute with biometric know-how maker Idemia.
The junta has accused the French firm of holding the nation’s civil identification database “hostage” since March on account of unpaid payments. The difficulty has made it inconceivable to register new voters and replace the voting registry, the army authorities says.
Idemia confirmed to Reuters that the service has been shut down due to excellent invoices, including that the corporate has no contact with the junta. The corporate was employed by the previous Malian authorities to create the civil identification system referred to as RAVEC.
The interim authorities, which seized management of the nation after a 2021 coup d’état, additionally declare that the dispute has slowed down the rollout of the nation’s new biometric id playing cards, Reuters reports.
This isn’t the primary time the Mali junta has entered a dispute involving Idemia. In Might 2022, as relationships between the West African nation and France soured, a Mali court docket summoned French Overseas Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, accusing his authorities of persuading the previous Malian president to provide the contract for the nation’s biometric passports to Idemia in 2015.
Mali’s common elections, that are set to return democratic rule to the nation, have been delayed for 2 years. The nation stated that the delay can be brief and {that a} new timeline can be introduced quickly. The junta has promised emigrate its civil identification knowledge to a brand new system underneath Malian management.
In March this yr, the junta additionally postponed the nation’s long-awaited constitutional referendum citing delays in issuing of nationwide ID playing cards. The referendum was lastly held in June.
The army authorities has dedicated to handing over its rule in March 2024.
Article Subjects
Africa | biometrics | government purchasing | IDEMIA | Mali | voter registration
Author: Masha Borak
Date: 2023-09-27 11:49:57
