UNDP to provide ECP $5.9 million for capacity building

Monitoring report
ISLAMABAD: Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan, Takashi Kurai, and the country director of UNDP in Pakistan, lgnacio Artaza signed an agreement Wednesday for providing $5.9 million over three years (2017-2020) to support the Election Commission of Pakistan, and to further strengthen its capacity to hold elections, Geo News reported.
The project will build upon UNDP’s longstanding commitment to develop the capacity of key democratic institutions including provincial and national assemblies and the ECP itself.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Election Commissioner Justice Sardar Muhammad Raza (retd) expressed pleasure over signing of agreement between the government of Japan and UNDP for the project aiming to support the ECP.
He said the project will further fortify ECP’s professional capacity to help strengthen electoral process of Pakistan.
Japanese envoy said he believes that both the ECP and UNDP will play their role to make the upcoming election credible and transparent; which surely will be a great achievement of democracy and development for people of Pakistan. The long-standing partnership between, UNDP, Japan and the ECP is instrumental in building a foundation for democratic governance and sustainable, inclusive development in Pakistan, said Ignacio
Artaza. With the generous funding from Japan, this project will help build the institutional and technical capacity of the ECP to conduct credible and inclusive elections, enhance participation, especially by young voters and women, and work with Unesco on building a media landscape in which election proceedings are covered accurately and objectively.