The government of Japan has provided a $5.4 million grant to Cambodia to renew voter information registration and management systems. The support is aimed at securing voter information and eventually making elections fair and accurate, said the embassy of Japan in Cambodia.

An exchange of note event was held today, January 23, and attended by Prak Sokhonn, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and Ueno Atsushi, ambassador of Japan, at the foreign ministry. 

The grant is part of “Project for the Economic and Social Development Programme”. 

“It will include the provision of a dedicated server and associated cyber security devices. The new hardware will replace the system donated by the Government of Japan in 2016,” said Ueno, during the event.

“We believe that, in order to ensure fair elections, a technologically secure system is very important. Having a robust system to register and manage voter information is essential if an election is to be fair and accurate. The system is also indispensable in ensuring the security of digitally recorded voter information, particularly since unauthenticated access to voter data has occurred in some countries in recent years,” he added.

Ueno expected that the project and the grant will contribute to the holding of free and fair elections and will support the development of the Kingdom’s democracy. 

He stressed the consistent position of Japan on democracy and the belief that people should be able to express their opinions freely in order to build a healthy, democratic society. 

“Japan expects Cambodia to continue to take concrete actions to enhance its democracy and we will, of course, continue to support Cambodia in this area,” Ueno added.

The foreign ministry said in a January 22 press release that the grant underscores Japan’s steadfast support for Cambodian democracy through the betterment of electoral process management and organisation.