Independent Election Commission (IEC) on Thursday said about 4,000 biometric devices have arrived in Kabul ahead of next month’s parliamentary elections.

Officials said an additional 18,000 units will be delivered before October 20.

Each polling station will be supplied with at least one unit – which looks similar to a mobile phone.

The unit will record voter data and fingerprints so as to ensure voters only cast their ballots once.

According to officials the devices are easy to use and voter details can be added quickly.

Officials also assured the public that these devices are secure and that even in the event of them being stolen, no one will be able to access the data.

They said the use of this will cut down on the risk of people interfering in the election process. Officials also said that the commission personally “collected all equipment directly from the airport, so no other organization will meddle in the process.”

The IEC will also employ professional people, including university lecturers and teachers, who will be responsible for operating these devices on election day.

Commissioners have warned that anyone trying to vote for a second time on election day will be arrested and prosecuted as this would be a crime.

The biometric issue has been a controversial topic for months after the political parties coalition first raised the issue of large-scale fraud committed during the voter registration process.

After repeated calls to government and the IEC, the commission finally agreed to implement the system and announced the decision last week.

Since then, the coalition has called for details around the then proposed system to be made public.

On Thursday, the IEC unveiled the units – which are made by a German company, Dermalog.

Last week a source told TOLOnews that government had agreed to a German company providing the biometric system for elections. According to the source, the total cost would be about 15 million euros and the company will send 24,000 units and other necessary equipment to Kabul by October 10.

An official said at a press conference on Thursday that each device has the ability to work offline and online. Once connected to its server, all data will be downloaded to a single source.

He said that leading up to the elections, the devices will be tested in order to iron out any teething problems before polling day.