Appeals – Public Procurement of the System for Biometric Voter Identification and Ballot Paper Scanning at Polling Stations
Sarajevo, 10 April 2026 – In relation to the public procurement of the system for biometric voter identification and ballot paper scanning at polling stations, on 19 March 2026 the Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted the Decision on the Selection of the Most Advantageous Tenderer, pursuant to which the contract for the procurement of equipment for the system for biometric voter identification and ballot paper scanning at polling stations was awarded to the group of tenderers consisting of “Smartmatic BH” d.o.o., as the lead member of the group, and “Smartmatic International Holding” B.V., Amsterdam (the Netherlands), and “DSC” Agency for the Protection of Persons and Property.
Three appeals were lodged against the said Decision, namely by the group of tenderers “Planet Soft” d.o.o. Banja Luka, as well as by the companies “Artco Group” d.o.o. and “Provis” d.o.o. Bijeljina.
On 7 April 2026, the company “Artco Group” d.o.o. informed the Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Procurement Review Body of the withdrawal of its appeal.
The statement in response to the appeal lodged by the group of tenderers “Planet Soft” d.o.o. Banja Luka was dispatched by courier service to the Procurement Review Body on 3 April 2026, and today, 10 April 2026, the statement in response to the appeal lodged by the company “Provis” d.o.o. Bijeljina was also dispatched.
At the same time, a request for the urgent resolution of the appeals in question was also submitted to the Procurement Review Body, in accordance with the provisions of Article 111(6) of the Law on Public Procurement.
The Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina particularly points out that the public procurement in question concerns the implementation of election technologies for the 2026 General Elections, while the deadlines for the preparation, implementation and testing of the system are objectively limited and prescribed by law. Any unjustified delay in the public procurement procedure, particularly through appeals that do not meet the statutory requirements, objectively jeopardises the possibility of the timely implementation of a procurement that is of exceptional general public interest for Bosnia and Herzegovina.
We particularly emphasise that the Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina is conducting the entire public procurement procedure for the system for biometric voter identification and ballot paper scanning at polling stations in a transparent manner and in accordance with the Law on Public Procurement of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the bylaws governing public procurement.