The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has proposed a total budget of N873.78 billion for the conduct of the 2027 general elections, with substantial allocations to election operations, technology and capital expenditure.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, who made the presentation before the Senate and House of Representatives joint committee on Electoral Matters at the National Assembly on Thursday, said preparations for the 2027 polls had already commenced in line with statutory requirements mandating that election funding be appropriated at least 360 days before the date fixed for the exercise.

The committee budget defence was chaired by Senator Simon Bako Lalong and his House of Representatives counterpart, Hon. Adebayo Balogun

He said early appropriation was necessary to guarantee adequate planning and seamless execution of the nationwide elections.From the summary of the proposal, the Commission divided the budget into four major components.

Election operations accounted for the largest share with N375.75 billion, covering activities directly related to the conduct of the polls.

Election administrative costs are projected at N92.31 billion, while election technology costs stand at N209.21 billion, reflecting the Commission’s continued reliance on technology-driven processes.

INEC also proposed N154.90 billion for election capital costs.

Altogether, the four main components amount to N832.17 billion. Amupitan said that an additional N41.61 billion has been earmarked for miscellaneous expenses, bringing the grand total of the 2027 general election budget proposal to N873.78 billion.

Amupitan noted that the capital component of the proposal was significantly higher than in previous budgets, explaining that many capital items not adequately captured in earlier appropriations had now been consolidated into the 2027 general election budget.

He provided detailed breakdown codes for each category, stating that election operations fall under codes 230101 to 230601; administrative costs under 230703 to 230812; technology costs under 230707 to 230811; capital costs under 230198 to 320201; while miscellaneous expenses are contained in code 230725.

According to him, detailed explanations of the proposed expenditure, including specific activities and cost items, are contained in pages one to five of the submitted document. (Daily trust)