The Time to Digitise Nigeria's Electoral Process is Now!

As Nigeria's next electoral cycle draws close, I am reminded of the mental and physical stress I underwent while trying to ensure  I got registered to vote during the last season.

Even though I had taken time off work on two separate days to get registered, the human traffic was too heavy and the number of personnel too inadequate to fill the needs of the large community.


There would have been many more time-poor and well meaning Nigerians who could not be registered to vote, thus disenfranchised, largely due to the inhibiting and inefficient procedures.


The government is to be commended for the issuance of unique national identification numbers (NIN) and its drive for compliance, which has lead to high enrolment rate amongst nationals. Against this background, I think voters' registration for the federal polls should not be such a hassle during the current round.


We live in such a fast-paced global economy, driven by a confluence of digital technologies. Therefore, it would not be an Herculean task to digitise the entire electoral process for Nigeria, Africa's most populous country.


In a useful diversion, one can observe how the innovative inflow of fintech firms into Nigeria's financial sector has increased the rate of financial service subscription and financial access through the use of mobile telephony services. 


In effect, with all required documents uploaded and Bank Verification Number assigned, Nigerians no longer throng banking halls just to open functional accounts or obtain short term loans.


Likewise, with a little dose of political will and the introduction of super-efficient technology, we can also transform Nigeria's electoral process.


We can leverage the NIN to register and verify voter identity across urban and rural areas, using an electoral function similar to the banking USSD function. 

The number of mobile phone subscribers as at August 2021 stood at 188,997,799 persons, according to Nigeria's National Communication Commission (NCC). This represents 91 per cent of Nigeria's 2020 population estimate of 206.1 milion. Clearly, we can leverage mobile technology to drive both efficiency and inclusiveness in Nigeria's electoral process.


In any case, with COVID-19 scares still in the air and the need to take commonsensical precautions, we cannot afford to endanger the health of the Nigerian electorate.


Electronic registration, electronic voting, and electronic transmission of election results can be veritable tools for ensuring efficient, free, fair, and highly credible elections in the run-up to the 2023 elections.


So, this post is a toast to the mental health and well being of the Nigerian electorate!


Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) can upgrade its policies and procedures in order to accommodate electronic processes, and especially mobile telephony technologies, that drive inclusion of ALL eligible voters, so that no one's vote is left behind. 


Yes we can, and we should!


#efficiency, #elections

#Nigeria, #voting, #worldmentalhealthday, #2023elections, #INEC

...

Photo credit: Oluyomi Ola-David

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