EU pledges €4m to support polls
Staff Reporter :
The European Union (EU) will provide more than €4 million in assistance to support Bangladesh in conducting elections in accordance with international standards, EU Ambassador to Dhaka Michael Miller announced on Tuesday.
The announcement came after a meeting between Ambassador Miller and Chief Election Commissioner A M M Nasir Uddin at the Election Commission building in Agargaon, Dhaka. A six-member EU delegation also attended the discussions.
“The European Union is working in partnership with Bangladesh to ensure necessary preparations ahead of the national election scheduled for early 2026,” Miller said. “As part of this process, we are providing an assistance package worth over €4 million to support the Election Commission of Bangladesh.”
He explained that the funding will be used to strengthen capacity in key areas such as operational planning, citizen observation, dispute resolution, and overall election management. Representatives from the European Partnership for Democracy, who are experts in election observation and citizen engagement, were also part of the delegation.
“Bangladesh is a priority country for the EU’s Election Observation Mission. We will continue discussions with the interim government and the Election Commission in the coming months regarding this issue,” Miller added.
A pre-election technical expert team is scheduled to arrive in Bangladesh next month to assess whether the environment is suitable for a full observation mission.
“This is not a full mission, but a technical assessment to review the realities and capacities. Our objective is to ensure a credible, free, and fair election,” the ambassador clarified.
Miller emphasised that it remains the Election Commission’s responsibility to set the election date. The EU’s role, he said, is to support initiatives such as voter education, capacity building for domestic observer organisations, coordination with the Election Commission, and combating misinformation.
“Bangladesh has prior experience in conducting democratic elections, but recent polls have been questioned regarding their conduct and results. That is why our efforts focus on raising awareness of democratic rights, especially among young voters,” he added.