Stakeholders Move to Strengthen Broadband, Internet Connectivity for Seamless Electoral Process

Emma Okonji

As Nigeria prepares for the next general elections in 2027, stakeholders in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector have stressed the need for the government to strengthen broadband and internet connectivity to enable seamless electoral processes across states.

The stakeholders spoke at The Nigeria eGovernment Summit and Awards 2026, which was held in Lagos, with the theme: ‘Mainstreaming Technologies in Nigeria Election Management.’

The Commissioner, Science and Technology, Cross River State, Asso. Prof. Justin Beshel, in his lead paper presentation at a panel session moderated by the CEO of VDT Communications, Mr. Biodun Omoniyi, explained that although technology is available in Nigeria, the rate at which such technology thrives is what matters to the electorates.

“Nigeria is not totally backward in technology, but the environment where the technology is deployed, determines whether it can thrive or remain redundant. So, gradually, electoral technology is becoming a central modern tool, from voter accreditation and logistics to resource management and public communication. But its effectiveness depends solely on the environment it operates. Over time, a good number of us have been used as ad hoc staff during electoral processes. And over time, we have been faced with the challenges of broadband and internet connectivity for uploading and transmitting election results,” Beshel said.

According to him, the challenge in the present time is the inability to get reliable broadband for last-mile connectivity, adding that several localities, polling units, and wards in the hinterlands do not have internet connectivity, which according to him, is a major challenge to a seamless electoral process.

Beshel further explained that Nigeria cannot build technology-enabled elections on technology alone, insisting that Nigeria must build the infrastructure and create policy environment that allows the technology to work, and make broadband part of the infrastructure of election management.
In his views, technology-enabled election operations require connectivity that is available, connectivity that must reach the locations where electoral operations take place, including the hard-to-reach communities.

He insisted that if Nigeria wants technology-enabled elections, Nigeria must first build an environment that enables the technology.

The Chief Executive Officer of Tizel Cybersecurity, Mrs. Happiness Obioha, who presented the second lead paper at the panel session, said Nigeria needed to secure her digital trust and the political environment itself for the forthcoming election.

“Nigeria must build a secured, trusted, and resilient digital election ecosystem.
Governance, policy, and compliance, building trust, and voter confidence, are key for the success of electoral process. Although the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machine are there for elections, but we are looking at implementing something much better. We are looking at the electronic poll book, which of course, does quick verification and confirm identity. We are also looking at e-transmition of results and AI analytics, the cloud, and virtual infrastructure, which are very key for a successful election process,” Obioha said.

Panelists advised that government must develop strong digital infrastructure across states in order to build voter’s confidence. They were of the view that any technology deployed without voter’s confidence, is bound to fail.  

They called for massive investment in technologies that will support electoral processes in the country.

National Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer, Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), Dr. Vincent Olatunji, in his keynote speech, spoke about the data protection perspective of the summit theme.

According to him, there is need to protect citizens’s data and to build trust in any election.  

“Almost 70 per cent of Niger’s youth are digital natives. The only language they understand is their technologies. To guarantee trust and confidence in any election, we must ensure that our data with INEC is secured and safe, and cannot be accessed by unauthorised persons,” Olatunji said.

In his welcome address, Chairman, Nigeria eGovernment Summit, Lanre Ajayi, said The Nigeria eGovernment Summit, which is in its eight series, was designed to advance digital governance especially in the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to transform how government serves citizens, manages resources, delivers public services, and engages with the governed.

“Year after year, the summit has brought together the public sector and the private sector, government and civil society, policymakers and technology innovators, not merely to discuss ideas, but to forge partnerships, drive commitments, and catalyse action. We do not convene simply to talk about digital government. We convene to build it,”Ajayi said.