The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) on Wednesday presented its 2009 elections "atlas of results" to President Jacob Zuma and political party leaders.

The atlas, believed to be the only publication of its kind in the world, is intended to provide a comprehensive geographical analysis of the 2009 national and provincial elections.

It makes a comparative analysis of the performance of each political party in each province and nationally.

This is the third such atlas produced by the IEC, the first having been in 1999.

During a special presentation function at Parliament, Zuma praised the IEC for adhering since 1996 to the principles of independence and impartiality.

Not only, this, but the IEC was one of the most pioneering institutions in South Africa, he said.

It had further gained recognition world-wide for its ability, so much so that the rest of the world no longer considered it necessary to send observers to South Africa for elections.

The IEC had also contributed to successful elections having been held elsewhere on the continent, Zuma said.

IEC chairperson Brigalia Bam, said that as far as the commission was aware, South Africa was the only country to produce such an atlas.

Copies had also been given to the United Nations, the Commonwealth, and African Union.

The publication's strength lay in the fact that by adding a spatial component, voluminous elections data was transformed into illustrative and easy to understand maps, she said.

Most political party leaders were present to receive their special leather-bound copies from the IEC.

Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille went one step further, cornering Zuma as he was leaving to sign her copy for her.