With the presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for July, youth voters represent over 40% of the total registered voters in Rwanda, as disclosed by the recently released final voter list by the National Electoral Commission on June 30.
More than 9 million Rwandans have registered to vote, with youth comprising 42% (3.7 million voters) of the total, while women account for 53%.
The implementation of the Rwanda Election Management Information System has facilitated the verification of registration details, identification updates, and polling station transfers for registered voters, allowing access through personal telephones or laptops.
In Kigali City, 1.1 million individuals are registered voters, with 40% (470,043) being youth and 48% women.
The voter list shows 2.055 million registered voters in the Southern Province, with youth making up 43% and women 55%.
In the Western Province, youth constitute 45% of the 2.038 million registered voters, while women make up 55%.
The Northern Province has 1.4 million registered voters, with youth representing 44% and women 54%.
Additionally, in the Diaspora, 22% of the 77,138 registered voters are youth, and 47% are women.
The National Electoral Commission is collaborating with diaspora communities to ensure the timely delivery of voting materials to polling stations overseas, through a joint effort with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Charles Munyaneza, the NEC Executive Secretary, emphasized that no further changes to the voter list will be allowed once the final list is released, and the system for making alterations has been closed off.
Election campaigns commenced on June 22 and will continue until July 13. Rwandans in the country will cast their votes in the presidential and parliamentary elections on July 15, while the Diaspora will vote on July 14.
Furthermore, elections for House representatives of special interest groups, including women, youth, and persons with disabilities, will be held on July 16, concluding a three-day voting exercise.
In the Chamber of Deputies, 53 MPs will be elected through direct universal suffrage, with almost all of them being presented by political parties. Additionally, 24 seats are reserved exclusively for women, representing 30% of all seats in the Lower House, while two special seats are designated for youth, and one for persons living with disabilities.
During the 2017 presidential elections, the voters’ list comprised 6.8 million names before increasing to 8.1 million voters during the 2018 parliamentary polls.