The African Union has opened a seven-day assessment of Nigeria’s preparedness for the upcoming 2027 general election, putting the country’s electoral system under scrutiny over its ability to deliver credible, transparent and inclusive polls for a projected electorate of nearly 100 million voters.
The AU Pre-Election and Needs Assessment Mission, led by former Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister, Demeke Hassen will be in Nigeria for one week to assess preparations, identify potential gaps and recommend corrective measures ahead of the elections.
The mission’s intervention comes as Nigeria prepares for its general polls, with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC expected to manage 176,846 polling units and deploy more than 1.4 million ad hoc personnel nationwide.
Hassen says the AU’s assessment would focus on the entire electoral chain, from the pre-election phase through voting and results management stressing that the quality of preparations before election day would be critical to the credibility and acceptance of the final outcome.
He asked INEC to demonstrate its readiness in key areas including the credibility of the voter register, electoral technology, logistics, funding, inclusion, transparency, security coordination and the management and publication of results.
The AU mission is also seeking clarity on unresolved legal and administrative disputes and the measures being taken to protect the independence of the electoral commission while ensuring effective security coordination during the polls.
One of the major focus of the AU is the assessment of the voter register, as the electorates rapidly approaches the 100-million mark.
The AU delegation says it wants to know whether the register will be fully finalised, credible and ready for scrutiny by political parties, civil society organisations and other stakeholders before the elections.
INEC Chairman, professor Joash Amupitan who was represented by a National Commissioner in the commission, Rhoda Gumus stresses on the recent off – cycle elections as practical test to the Electoral Umpire’s preparations for 2027 polls.
The Commission asks the AU’s assistance in digital training, e-learning, simulation exercises and standardised ICT training for the massive temporary workforce that will operate the election across the country.
INEC is also seeking technical cooperation on election disinformation and information integrity, particularly the emerging threat posed by artificial intelligence-generated deepfakes.
INEC assures the delegation of full cooperation, promising access to its operational data, directors and technical teams throughout the assessment as it reaffirms its independence, neutrality and commitment to conducting the 2027 elections in accordance with the law.
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(Editor: Nkoli Omhoudu)
