The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) demanded the government to provide additional 1.1 billion Birr (about $30 million) for its preparations of the upcoming general election the country is set to hold within less than a year.
The Head of the Board, Birtukan Mideksa, today said her office needs the additional budget for protecting the voters from coronavirus and to properly handle the 6th round of the country’s general election. She made the remark during a consultation meeting the Board held today on the precautions it will take during the election.
It is stated that addional people will be recruited by the Board to make sure that the voters strictly obey the precautions to avoid the spread of the pandemic. In the coming December and January the Board is planning to provide training for the people who will be deployed to make sure the voting will be conducted freely with precaution measures to avoid the spread of coronavirus.
It is indicated that the 6th general election of Ethiopia is expected to be held at the end of May 2021 or during the first weeks of June. Like many countries in the world the global pandemic has forced Ethiopia to postpone its general election which was planned to be conducted last May.