Opening a “new golden chapter” in bilateral ties, India and Indonesia have signed a major Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to modernize Jakarta’s electoral framework. The agreement, finalized during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s high-profile state visit to Jakarta, will pave the way for India to export customized Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) to the world’s third-largest democracy.
The partnership serves as a massive global endorsement of India’s indigenous electoral technology, even as domestic opposition parties continue to debate its efficacy.
Modernizing the Indonesian Ballot
Indonesia is home to nearly 288 million people and currently relies on an extensive, logistically complex single-day paper ballot system to elect its president and lawmakers. Looking ahead, Jakarta plans to transition to digital voting by the 2029 national elections, utilizing Indian technical expertise and hardware.
The comprehensive agreement between the two election commissions will facilitate:
-
Tailored Technology: Co-developing Indonesia-specific EVM hardware and design structures.
-
Institutional Frameworks: Collaborative training, capacity building, and digital supervisory tools.
-
Voter Education: Sharing Indian-pioneered strategies for digital voter awareness and electoral inclusion.
The shift follows years of bilateral observation. Notably, Indonesian election officials evaluated India’s physical setup firsthand as part of an international observer team during the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, praising the framework as highly efficient, free, and fair.
Expanding India’s Voting Footprint
India has a long history of tech-driven democratic governance, scaling from its first pilot projects in the late 1980s to executing a flawless, nationwide EVM rollout across all 543 Lok Sabha constituencies in 2004. Indonesia joins a growing list of nations adopting or adapting the Indian voting model:
| Country | Adoption Status | Technical Scope |
| Bhutan | Fully Adopted | Early adopter of customized Indian EVMs with comprehensive technical assistance. |
| Nepal | Pilot Phase | Utilized customized Indian hardware for pilot regional exercises. |
| Namibia | Commercial Deployment | India’s first commercial success story; successfully deployed Indian-made EVMs and subsequent VVPAT units. |
| Indonesia | Under Development (Target 2029) | Signed 2026 MoU to co-develop customized tech and human resource structures. |
“Democratic values and unity in diversity have been shared strengths for both India and Indonesia. We are set to further strengthen our democratic cooperation through an MoU between the Election Commissions of both nations.”
— Prime Minister Narendra Modi
