By Lateef Ibrahim, Abuja
The Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof Joash Amupitan, SAN, had disclosed that the Commission
will conduct a nationwide mock accreditation exercise in November this year as part of its preparations for the 2027 General Election.
The exercise, Amupitan said, is expected to test the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and other electoral equipment, while enabling the Commission to identify and address potential operational challenges ahead of the nationwide polls.
The INEC Chairman made the disclosure on Friday when a delegation from the Canadian High Commission, led by Canada’s Chargé d’Affaires to Nigeria, David Sproule, visited the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.
Amupitan said the nationwide mock accreditation exercise was one of five strategic priorities adopted by the Commission as it intensifies preparations for the 2027 general elections.
He listed the other priorities as consolidating technological gains, deepening electoral inclusion, strengthening institutional capacity and technical support, and countering misinformation while safeguarding electoral integrity.
His words, “Conduct of Mock accreditation in November 2026 to assess our readiness for the general election. We will be subjecting our electoral equipment, the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), to a rigorous field test to fortify the sanctity of the ballot during the election.
‘We will appreciate your partnership in ensuring the success of this Mock Accreditation.
“Electoral administration is a multi-stakeholder enterprise. While INEC remains an unbiased umpire, support from domestic and international partners helps ensure our democratic processes evolve in step with global best practices.
‘As we turn our full institutional focus toward the 2027 General Election, the Commission is scaling its administrative capacity to manage an unprecedented logistical operation.
“In 2027, INEC will deploy a workforce of approximately 1.4 million ad-hoc personnel across more than 176,000 Polling Units nationwide—representing one of the largest mobilisations of human resources for a national assignment in our country’s history”, he said.
Continuing, he said, “We view the success in Osun not as a final destination, but as the gold standard that will guide our preparations for 2027″.
The INEC chairman referred to recent off-cycle elections, including the Anambra State governorship election, the Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections and the Ekiti State governorship election, as proving grounds for electoral reforms and operational improvements.
He also cited the August 15, 2026, Osun State governorship election as a significant benchmark for the Commission, noting that 3,556 out of the 3,763 polling units, representing 94.5 per cent, opened for accreditation and voting by 8:30 a.m.
According to him, the election also recorded optimal BVAS performance, seamless uploading of results on the INEC Result Viewing portal (IReV), as well as proactive crisis management.
Amupitan further disclosed that INEC would require approximately 1.4 million ad-hoc personnel to conduct the 2027 elections across more than 176,000 polling units nationwide.
He said the Commission had also established a dedicated Artificial Intelligence (AI) Unit to explore the responsible use of AI in critical areas, including data management, voter registration and results transmission, while strengthening safeguards against its misuse.
The INEC chairman added that the Commission would participate in the Global Conference on Responsible AI and Elections scheduled to hold from September 9 to 11, 2026, in Ottawa, Canada.
Amupitan also reaffirmed the independence and neutrality of the electoral body, assuring the Canadian delegation and the international community of INEC’s “absolute independence, neutrality, and unyielding commitment to democratic integrity.”
The Canadian delegation, meanwhile, reaffirmed Canada’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s democratic and electoral processes, particularly in the areas of electoral participation, women’s inclusion, public awareness, technical assistance and election observation.
Speaking earlier, Mr Sproule commended INEC’s commitment to a free and credible electoral process and reaffirmed Canada’s readiness to support the Commission in areas it deemed necessary, including election observation.
He expressed particular interest in the active participation of women and other segments of society in the electoral process, and said Canada was confident in the Commission’s capacity to conduct credible elections.
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