The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has approved the establishment of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Division within its Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Department as part of efforts to harness AI’s benefits while mitigating its risks in the electoral process. The decision was announced during INEC’s weekly meeting in Abuja, with National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, highlighting the increasing importance of AI in elections both in Nigeria and globally.
The new division aims to address challenges such as the spread of fake news and online content manipulation, while leveraging AI for data-driven decision-making, risk detection and mitigation, voter services automation, and geo-spatial intelligence to optimize logistics like material distribution and polling unit allocation. Olumekun explained that centralizing AI governance will allow INEC to better coordinate and maximize its technological investments, enhance decision-making through predictive analytics, and strengthen electoral credibility with intelligent safeguards.
This initiative positions INEC at the forefront of integrating AI capabilities within its ICT infrastructure and represents a significant step in ongoing electoral reforms that fall within the commission’s administrative authority. The creation of the AI Division follows INEC’s participation in several continental conferences on AI’s impact on elections, underscoring its commitment to modernizing election management and protecting the integrity of Nigeria’s democratic process ahead of the 2027 polls.
