The Electoral Commission of Zambia has announced a fresh adjustment to the arrival schedule of ballot papers for the 2026 general election, saying two consignments originally due to land in the country over the weekend will now arrive tomorrow morning at 05:00 hours, as the commission moved to reassure stakeholders that the printing process has remained transparent throughout.

ECZ commissioner Ndiyoi Mutiti told a media briefing that the adjustment stemmed from an operational change in the flight programme rather than any irregularity in the printing process itself. She explained that both remaining consignments would now be delivered on a single chartered flight with a capacity of 100 tonnes, scheduled to depart Dubai at 23:00 hours local time, corresponding to 21:00 hours Zambian time.

The clarification supersedes an earlier update issued by the commission at 08:00 hours the previous day, which had indicated that the first flight carrying ballot papers would arrive that same morning. Ms Mutiti said the printer, Alghurair Publishing and Printing Company, would provide further details of the remaining flight schedule and packing lists, which would be communicated to stakeholders in due course.

Speaking separately from Dubai, Ms Mutiti said the commission’s level of transparency during the printing of ballot papers for the election has been above board throughout the process. She said all stakeholders, including political parties, civil society organisations, security agencies, the Church and the media, had witnessed the printing of election materials in the Gulf city from beginning to end.

The commissioner’s remarks came in direct response to claims by National Reconciliation Party for Unity and Prosperity chief presidential advisor and Tonse Alliance secretary-general Zumani Zimba, who alleged that the ECZ had not disclosed full information on the movement of ballot papers.

“The commission has been extremely transparent and has involved every stakeholder of the process from beginning to end, and that is why members of stakeholders have witnessed the inspecting of ballot papers and the inspecting of pallets,” Ms Mutiti said.

She added that schedules of flight details had been shared on a platform involving all stakeholders currently present in Dubai, and that consignment schedules would continue to be updated as printing and dispatch progressed.

A1 Ghurair Printing and Publishing vice-president for commercial and business development Rajeev Kumar Tyagi said there was an operational consignment programme in place, and that the consignment would be flown on as planned, with the packing list of the remaining pallets to be loaded shared with all stakeholders once finalised.

The ballot paper printing process has become a closely watched element of election preparations, with the ECZ facing scrutiny from multiple directions as the 13 August polling date approaches. The commission has sought to counter suggestions of opacity by inviting political parties, civil society organisations and the media to inspect materials directly, including a visit scheduled at the Silverest Warehouse where the first consignment of 35,000,800 printed ballot papers landed at Kenneth Kaunda International Airport from Dubai aboard a chartered cargo aircraft.

The commission’s handling of the logistics has taken on heightened significance amid a wider dispute between the ruling party and opposition figures over the credibility of the electoral process. Viral social media misinformation had previously and falsely claimed that the United States Government would deploy its own election observers and conduct an independent parallel vote tabulation, a claim the US Embassy in Lusaka explicitly denied in a statement confirming it was not sending an observation mission and would not conduct a parallel vote count.

With just over two weeks remaining before Zambians go to the polls, the ECZ has continued to stress that all logistical elements required for a credible election, including the printing, transport and distribution of ballot materials, remain firmly on track despite the scheduling adjustments.

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