The Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) and the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) have signed a memorandum of understanding to work together in preparing accurate voter lists and ensuring that the logistics of conducting elections smoothly are in place.

The MOU will enable ECN to know how many eligible voters there are in each constituency from the NSA census data collection. The two institutions will work together to develop ICT systems such as e-recruitment and information dissemination and cooperate in the provision of transport for field work.

In addition, the MOU will assist the institutions in joint human resource use in terms of skills, knowledge transfer, statistics analysis and research, logistics management, and sharing best practices for the recruitment of field staff. NSA's Statistician-General Alex Shimuafeni says the collection of data is vital for the planning of elections.

"When organising elections, the ECN needs to know how many eligible voters there are in each constituency. Census data provides this essential information, allowing the ECN to prepare accurate voter lists, allocate resources, and ensure that the logistics of conducting elections run smoothly. The Census might seem routine, but its ramifications run deep in the heart of our democracy."

The two institutions will further work together to utilise expertise and experience based on the results of the census as the central statistical authority of the state. The ECN's Chief Electoral and Referenda Officer, Peter Shaama, says that the nature of electoral and referendum processes requires enormous planning.

"Preparation in terms of procurement, recruitment, and deployment of resources, including election materials and equipment, personnel, and vehicles. In our view, the approach and modalities employed by the ECN in operationalizing its electoral and referendum processes are similar to the approach applied by the NSA because we have to recruit countrywide."