Arrival of first consignment of ballot papers rescheduled to Tuesday

The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) has announced that the first consignment of ballot papers that were scheduled to arrive in Zambia today has been rescheduled to Tuesday, July 28, 2026. Speaking during a joint press briefing in Dubai today, ECZ Commissioner, Ndiyoyi Mutiti, explained that due to changes by the air operator, the first batch of ballot papers which were initially supposed to be delivered today will now be combined with the one scheduled for Monday 27 July, 2026. Ambassador Mutiti added that a bigger plane with a capacity of 100 tons will be used to carry both consignments of ballot papers to Zambia which will depart Dubai on Monday at 23:00 hours Dubai time, and arrive in Zambia on Tuesday, July 28 at 05:00hrs local time. “The printer will provide us with the details of the rest of the flight schedule on Monday,” she said. And Al Ghurair Vice President, Rajeev Tyagi, said his company will distribute the packing list for the first and second ballot paper consignments on Monday to leave no room for speculations regarding the transportation of ballot papers to Zambia. Mr Tyagi indicated that his printing firm decided to use a much bigger plane to facilitate the smooth transportation of both ballot paper consignments including some parts of the third consignment. Meanwhile, the commission has dismissed claims as untrue suggesting that political stakeholders have not been provided with details of the delivery of the ballots to Zambia. Ambassador Mutiti said the commission has been transparent throughout the whole process of the ballot paper printing including sharing packing lists to all stakeholders for the dispatch of the election materials to Zambia.