East Africa’s Tanzania this week launched its biometric voter registration (BVR) system with plans to first employ it in an upcoming constitutional referendum and then general elections.

The National Electoral Commission (NEC) last week confirmed that a pilot voter registration through BVR was a success.

"Registration starts today at Njombe region and we are going to carry the activity for seven days before moving to another region," Damian Lubuva, chief of the National Electoral Commission (NEC), told Turkey’s Anadolu Agency by phone.

The NEC plans to start the registration in four regions in Southern Tanzania namely Njombe, Lindi, Mtwara and Ruvuma ahead of the referendum on the proposed constitution on April 30 and the general elections scheduled for October.

While a total of 250 BVR kits have been deployed in Njombe Region, the NEC is currently awaiting additional 7,050 kits to be used for registration in other parts on the country.

“In the first phase of the exercise, NEC will receive 2,000 kits from China in the first week of March. I want to assure you that NEC is an independent body and everything is transparent,” Judge Lubuva told a meeting, reported the Daily News.