The Youth Initiative for Advocacy Growth and Advancement (YIAGA) is partnering with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in developing a strategic framework for engaging Nigerian youths in the electoral cycle.

To this end, a strategy meeting was convened with stakeholders to kick-start the process. The development meeting which held from January 31st – February 1st in Abuja, had participants drawn from youth organisations across the country, as well as People With Disability (PWD) and INEC officials, all contributing to the development of the strategy.

In his opening remarks, Director of Voter Education and Publicity at INEC, Barr. Oluwole Uzzi, stated that, “the participation of citizens in the electoral process is a sine-qua non for measuring the quality of elections.”

According to Uzzi, an inclusive electoral process is an indicator of a country’s democratic development. He added that management of elections must ensure principles of inclusion and representation are guaranteed in their operations.

The INEC Youth strategy development is to be driven by four key principles namely, Ownership, Innovation, Partnership and Sustainability and Accountability. It is expected to be focused, inclusive, participatory and sustaining in order to cover various classes of youths including, Men, Women and PWDs. Series of meetings are expected to be held in the coming months as the INEC Youth Strategy develops.

YIAGA Executive Director Samson Itodo, in his remarks lauded INEC for the initiative saying: “It is very commendable that a public institution identified a gap in the electoral process and is taking necessary steps to bridge the gap.”

According to Itodo, there are several entry points for young people into the electoral process beyond just being voters as he reiterated that, young people can be candidates, election observers and Ad-hoc staff. He also advised INEC to retain its cohort of youth, especially from National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to enable the commission build a community of young people.

The INEC Youth Strategy meeting featured sessions on strategic thinking by Youth Organisations, Civil Society Organizations and INEC officials on how to develop an effective way of including young people in the electoral process.