Overview : The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) is a constitutional body established under section 77 of the Constitution to conduct all types of elections including referenda in Malawi. The Commission was established in 1998 with its head office located in Blantyre and three regional offices located in Mzuzu, Lilongwe and Blantyre. The Commission further draws its mandate from the Electoral Commission Act (ECA) Parliamentary and Presidential Elections Act (PPEA) and the Local Government Elections Act (LGEA), policies, guidelines and other relevant Acts of Parliament such as the Financial Management, Audit and Public Procurement Act. Section 16(5) of the EC Act further mandates the Commission to always comply with the Finance and Audit Acts. The 2015 MEC audit carried out by the Central Internal Audit Unit (CIAU) of the Treasury Department and the Auditor Generals’ independent review revealed gaps in computerized accounting system and the need for MEC to build capacities within its staff. It is against this background that MEC would like to procure an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software to assist with its operations. UNDP will provide the necessary resources and due diligence in procurement of the software through its support to the MEC as outlined in the Malawi Electoral Cycle Support (MECS) project. |