Next polls to be the best election in history

The upcoming national election will be the best election in the history, said Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus to a delegation of the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL).

“We want to ensure that this election will be the best in Bangladesh’s history and a milestone in the country’s democratic progress.”

Dr Yunus said Bangladesh will host a ‘free and fair’ election between December 2025 and June 2026.

He told this to the ANFREL when they met him at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka on Thursday (April 17), said the Chief Adviser’s Press wing on Saturday.

The ANFREL delegation included its Executive Director Brizza Rosales, Consultant for the Bangladesh Elections and Democracy Programme May Butoy, Senior Programme Officer for Campaign and Advocacy Tharindu Abeyrathna, Programme Officer Ayan Rahman Khan and Programme Associate Afsana Amey.

ANFREL, a regional network of civil society organizations dedicated to the advancement of electoral democracy in Asia, has been actively supporting election observation, democratic reforms, and civic engagement across the region for over two decades.

During the meeting, ANFREL shared its ongoing initiatives in Bangladesh, particularly its commitment to rebuilding independent, citizen-led election observation efforts.

The delegation also discussed the ongoing activities to conduct stakeholder mapping and needs assessments aimed at identifying opportunities for strengthening civil society engagement and promoting electoral transparency.