Dhaka, May 05 (V7N) – The National Identity Registration (NID) Division is set to convene an inter-ministerial meeting next week to identify and resolve issues surrounding the ongoing expatriate voter registration program, said ASM Humayun Kabir, Director General of the NID Division.

He made the announcement while speaking to journalists at his office in the Election Commission (EC) Building on Monday (May 5).

"We recently launched the expatriate voter program in Australia, and there are already regular voters participating there," Kabir said. “The program is currently running in eight countries, and Canada will be added next week, bringing the total to nine countries."

Countries Currently Covered:

  • United Arab Emirates

  • Italy

  • United Kingdom

  • Saudi Arabia

  • Qatar

  • Kuwait

  • Malaysia

  • Australia

He noted that the main challenge in expanding the initiative to other countries is limited space at Bangladeshi embassies abroad. "We have already held meetings with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The upcoming inter-ministerial meeting will help us pinpoint problems and design solutions to eventually roll out the program in 40 countries."

Kabir acknowledged that the program’s expansion has been slower than desired:

“It would have been better if we could have rolled this out in seven or eight additional countries over the past few months. However, I’m hopeful we’ll see more progress by the end of this month.”

Regarding the United States, he added, “We haven't received clearance yet. Once we do, we’ll be ready to begin operations there.”

To participate in the registration process, expatriates must apply online and then visit their nearest embassy in person to complete their registration, including taking a photograph on-site.

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