INEC, ECONEC Review Implementation of 2023 Election Recommendations

INEC, ECONEC Review Implementation of 2023 Election Recommendations

JOEL OLADELE, Abuja

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions (ECONEC) on Monday convened in Abuja to review Nigeria’s implementation of recommendations made by the ECOWAS Election Observation Mission (EOM) following the 2023 general elections.

The session was part of a post-election follow-up and needs assessment mission to strengthen electoral processes across the West African sub-region.

Welcoming the delegation, INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, described the visit as part of ECONEC’s routine but critical peer-review missions. He explained that ECOWAS had earlier deployed both long and short-term observers to monitor Nigeria’s 2023 general elections and later issued a total of 37 recommendations aimed at improving the electoral process.

“Of these recommendations, 13 were directed at INEC, while 24 others involved institutions such as the National Assembly, Nigeria Police Force, National Broadcasting Commission, NITDA, civil society organisations, NUJ, political parties, and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC),” he said.

Professor Yakubu assured the ECONEC delegation that INEC had reviewed and responded to all 13 recommendations specific to the Commission.

“We have considered those requiring administrative action, while awaiting the National Assembly’s legal review on recommendations requiring legislative intervention,” he said.

He noted that the Commission’s detailed responses were reflected in a broader report of 142 electoral reform proposals developed through nationwide consultations.

“These documents, including the 2023 election report, are available on our website and have also been made available in hard copy for this meeting,” he added.

Professor Yakubu also acknowledged the instrumental role of development partners and ECONEC for consistently supporting electoral integrity in the region.

“We are glad to host colleagues from Liberia and Ghana as part of this critical electoral knowledge-sharing initiative,” he said.

Speaking on behalf of the ECONEC delegation, the Head of Mission and Chairperson of the National Elections Commission of Liberia, Davidetta Browne-Lansanah, said the visit was a peer-to-peer engagement aimed at learning from Nigeria’s experience in implementing the 2023 election recommendations.

“This joint post-election follow-up and needs assessment mission is not just to verify implementation. It is a learning experience for all of us.

“We want to understand how INEC managed the challenges of the last elections and how its responses could guide our own institutions,” Browne-Lansanah said.

She praised INEC’s support to the Liberian Electoral Commission, particularly in the establishment of its ICT infrastructure. “Because of your intervention, we now have an ICT room. I get emotional talking about it because when we needed support, Nigeria, through ECONEC, was there for us,” she stated.

She emphasized the value of such follow-up missions for building stronger election management systems across West Africa.

“The problems faced by one electoral body are often faced by others. Learning from each other’s challenges and solutions strengthens us all,” she added.

Other notable ECONEC delegation members at the meeting included Deputy Chairman of the Electoral Commission of Ghana, Dr. Bossman Asare; Acting Permanent Secretary of ECONEC, Serigne Mamadou Ka; and international election experts from EISA, IDEA, and GIZ.