Nigeria's INEC yet to receive funds for 2027 elections, but preparations underway

Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed it has not yet received the budgeted funds for the 2027 general elections. Malam Mohammed Haruna, INEC National Commissioner for Voter Education and Publicity, stated this on Thursday in Abuja during an interactive session organized by the Peering Advocacy and Advancement Centre in Africa (PAACA) and Legis360.

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Our director of ICT just returned from China regarding procurement because not all the BVAS devices used during the last general elections were recovered. Orders need to be placed, and these things take time.

Despite the delay in fund release, Haruna assured that preparations for successful elections are progressing. INEC had proposed a budget of N873.78 billion for the 2027 polls, with significant portions allocated to operations, technology, and capital expenditure. According to the Electoral Act 2026, election funds must be released no later than six months before the general election, a timeline INEC believes it is still within.

The commission is already arranging to procure new election materials and replace equipment damaged or lost in previous elections, such as the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS). "Our director of ICT just returned from China regarding procurement because not all the BVAS devices used during the last general elections were recovered. Orders need to be placed, and these things take time," Haruna explained.

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This N800 billion plus sounds humongous, but when you calculate the average cost per voter, it is about six dollars, which is reasonable for a country such as Nigeria.

INEC also plans to conduct mock presidential elections to test its technology deployment, aiming to prevent a recurrence of the technical glitches that affected the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal during the 2023 presidential election. Addressing concerns about the high cost of elections, Haruna noted that Nigeria's election costs are relatively low compared to other nations, citing the average cost per voter at about six dollars. He also highlighted that the reliance on imported materials and exchange rate fluctuations contribute to the overall expenses. The commission continues to face challenges from conflicting court judgments and last-minute orders that disrupt its operations.

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People forget that virtually everything we use is imported. The BVAS devices and a lot of other election materials are imported. Exchange rate fluctuations also affect these costs.