Dhaka: The Election Commission will start the countrywide voter list update process on Saturday.

Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad will open the three-phase data collection for updating the country’s voter list at about 11:00am at Shilpakala Academy in Narsingdi town, said Director (Public Relations) of the Election Commission SM Azaduzzaman on Thursday.

Four election commissioners—Abdul Mobarak, Abu Hafiz, Zabed Ali and Shah Nawaz—and EC secretary Sirazul Islam will be present at the inauguration programme, he added.

The Election Commission will collect data of Bangladeshi citizens born on or before January 1, 2000 during the door-to-door data collection from 25 July to 22 September this year.

Of them, only those who were born on or before 1 January, 1998 will be registered as voters in 2016, while the remaining nationals in 2017 and 2018.

With 2.5 percent growth of the country’s exiting 9.62 crore voters, the commission estimates, some 24 lakh fresh voters will come out in 2016, and 48 lakh more in 2017 and 2018 following the data collection.

Enumerators will collect data in 189 upazilas/thana from 25 July  to August 9 in the first phase, while 184 upazilas/thana from 16 to 30 August in the second phase and 141 upazilas/thana from 7 to 22 September  in the third phase.

If any possible voter wants to be registered, s/he needs to have birth certificate, land deed (if any), education certificate (if any), receipt of house rent or copies of utility bills, passport (if any), NID Number of father or mother or spouse, EC officials said.

Photographs and fingerprints of the nationals born on or before 1 January, 1998 will be taken in three phases from 11 August to 20 October  through 5,400 possible registration centres across the country.

But photographs and fingerprints of the remaining citizens will be taken in also three phases from 22 October to 10 February next.

The EC will make the draft updated voter list public on January 2 next to receive complaints regarding the update.

After disposing of complaints, the commission will publish final updated voter list on 31 January next.

According to section 11 of the Voter List Act 2009, the Election Commission shall update the countrywide electoral rolls during 2-31 January every year.