CAIRO: The head of the UN-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur said Monday he expects Sudan’s national elections next month to go smoothly in the region, despite fears of violence and calls for the poll’s delay.

The April vote, Sudan’s first multiparty elections in decades, will see voters cast ballots for a national president, a southern president, local and national assemblies as well as governors.

International observers and human rights groups have expressed concerns about security in Darfur for the vote amid reports of government repression against activists and campaigners throughout the country.

But Ibrahim Gambari, who took over the UNAMID mission in January, said he doesn’t think security will be “a major consideration. The security will be pretty good, if our experience in the registration period was anything to go by,” he told The Associated Press after attending an international fundraising conference for Darfur in Cairo.

Gambari said an agreement between Sudan and Chad to stop supporting rebels in their respective countries, a general decline in fighting in Darfur and diminishing rebel control over territory have already had a positive impact on security.

He said UNAMID’s forces will help provide security for observers and the transportation of ballots in Darfur during the vote, which is slated to start April 11 and last three days.

Voter registration in Darfur has exceeded 60 percent so far, despite calls from a major rebel group for its supporters to boycott the elections. Another rebel group, which signed a ceasefire agreement with the government last month, had asked authorities to postpone the vote so it can organize its supporters.

Gambari's comments stand in contrast to those of Western rights groups, who have voiced concerns that a lack of a comprehensive cease-fire in Darfur and shortfalls in the election preparations could hamper the vote.