Govt, political parties to decide election time: UN envoy

Gwyn Lewis speaks to the media at the foreign ministry in Dhaka on 14 January, 2024.Collected

The government and political parties in Bangladesh will decide the timing of the next national election, says Gwyn Lewis, the United Nations’ (UN) resident coordinator in Dhaka. 

The UN official made the statement when a journalist asked her about the election time during a press briefing at the foreign ministry on Tuesday. She led a UN expert team in a meeting with foreign secretary Jashim Uddin at the ministry.  

While talking to the media after the meeting, Lewis noted that the UN is interested in providing technical assistance for the upcoming parliamentary elections. 

“Today we also met with the election commission. We will provide assistance as per the requirements of the commission. Our needs assessment delegation will work towards this end,” she said.

The UN delegation is scheduled to visit Chattogram on Wednesday and engage with different stakeholders, including political parties, civil society representatives, and experts. They will submit a report upon completion of their assessment. 

When asked about the election timeline, Lewis said the responsibility to determine a time lies solely with the government and political parties. “We do not want to comment on the timeline. We just want to provide technical and technological assistance in the elections”. 

A journalist asked if the authorities sought assistance for both local government and national elections, and the UN resident coordinator clarified that they have been asked for assistance for the next national election only. 

The interim government, led by Nobel peace prize laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus, was formed on 8 August, following the ouster of the Awami League government through a student-led uprising.

The interim administration has announced its plan to complete necessary reforms before holding national elections, tentatively scheduled for late this year or mid-2026.

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), however, is demanding that the national elections be held earlier than the announced time. It has already urged the interim government as well as other political parties to take initiatives for holding the next parliamentary elections by July and August this year.