INEC, NOA to partner ahead Anambra guber, 2027 polls

• As Yakubu says commission’s of conducting elections can’t be discharged without citizens’ sensitization

By Lateef Ibrahim, Abuja

The Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof Mahmood Yakubu has said that the commission’s mandate of conducting elections and electoral activities cannot be effectively discharged without advocacy and sensitization of citizens.

Yakubu stated this on Wednesday while playing host to the Director-General of the National Orientation Agency, NOA, and other management team of the agency in Abuja.

The INEC Chairman specifically reassured of the Commission’s willingness to partner with NOA, saying , “we are encouraged by the giant stride of the new management under your leadership”.

The INEC Chairman declared that the commission would like us to explore further areas of partnership through its Voter Education and Publicity and other relevant departments, particularly with the recent creation by the Commission of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Division under our ICT Department.

According to him, “Our mandate of conducting elections and electoral activities cannot be effectively discharged without advocacy and sensitization of citizens for which you are a central institution in Nigeria.

“Like INEC, you have offices across the Local Government Areas of the country which enable you to directly reach out to many Nigerians at community level.

“We have been following your giant strides. Your ‘NOA Content Factory’ dedicated to the creation and dissemination of information through the NOA TV, NOA Radio and The Explainer newsletter are platforms for informed and inclusive engagement with Nigerians.

“In the area of ICT, your national virtual hackathons provide a medium for engagement with young Nigerians, both at home and in the diaspora.

“Your commitment to fostering AI-Powered Data Management is a very good opportunity for targeted strategic communication.

“I would like us to explore further areas of partnership through our Voter Education and Publicity and other relevant departments, particularly with the recent creation by the Commission of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Division under our ICT Department.

“Another area where we need to strengthen our partnership is voter mobilisation.

“While INEC will continue its voter education efforts, the NOA should, working with other stakeholders such as the political parties, civil society organisations and the media, help in the area of voter mobilisation.

“The aim is to increase voter turnout and greater participation of the under-represented demographics in our electoral process, particularly youths, women and Persons with Disability (PwDs).

“It is for this reason that NOA has been included in the expanded membership of our Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES). “The Commission is also making efforts to revamp the National Inter-Agency Committee on Voter Education and Publicity (NICVEP) in which NOA will, again, play an active role.

“Your visit is coming at a critical time in our preparations for the Anambra State Governorship election holding on 8th November 2025, and the 2027 General Election.

“The nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) is scheduled to begin in about three weeks with the online pre-registration of voters on 18th August, followed by the in-person registration on 25th August 2025”, he said.