South Africa's Electoral Commission Ready To Receive Voters Weekend

to theoretical concepts associated with the constitutional role of the Electoral Commission as well as the voter registration processes. Staff had to attain 80% competency level in order to proceed to the practical module,” Mamabolo said. Mamabolo said the Commission had acquired 40 000 new Voter Management Devices (VMDs) to be used at voter registration stations and that they will be used for the first time on a mass scale during this registration weekend. “The VMDs represent a departure from the erstwhile ‘Zip-Zip’ machines which have been in use in the registration process since 1998. The VMDs will essentially operate in online mode in most parts of the country. In parts of the country where internet connection is not strong or reliable, the VMDs have been provisioned to operate in offline mode,” Mamabolo said. Mamabolo explained that in offline mode, the devices will be able to record transactions and perform verification based on data stored locally on each device. “The VMD’s will enable an almost instantaneous citizenship verification as well as the correct capturing of a residential address assisted by a mapping functionality. “Registration applications have been loaded and at least one VMD has been allocated to each voting station on the Logistics Information System. The VMD’s will consolidate and integrate business processes which were hitherto separated and thus inefficient,” Mamabolo said. Mamabolo said the Electoral Commission has noted with gratitude, the decision of the Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, to adjust the National Senior Certificate examination timetable in order to accommodate the elections on 1 November 2021. “This gesture from the Minister will enable young voters who are writing these examinations to participate in the elections,” Mamabolo said. Mamabolo said the Commission has also written to the Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, requesting that he facilitates a request to the President asking for