Ahead of the 2023 presidential and governorship elections, Yiaga Africa, a civil society organisation, has trained and deployed 882 Long Term Observers for the observation and reporting of pre-election environments in all the 774 local governments in Nigeria.

The observers are expected to monitor and report threats of electoral ills like voter inducement, violence and host of other issues.

The non-governmental organisation, in its Watching The Votes (WTV) project, deployed its 42 Master Trainers and 48 State Focal Points to all states to train the Observers on how to provide accurate information on the pre-election process and promotion of citizens’ engagement and participation ahead of the polls.

According to a statement from YIAGA Africa, the Long Term Observers have already commenced their pre-election activities by monitoring and observing the ongoing display of registered voters by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The report also stated that the observers will help to build early warning systems and provide necessary recommendations to the election umpire.

Apart from tracking the activities of INEC, the observers will also observe the activities of related agencies like the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Political Parties, Security Agencies and inclusivity of women and persons with disabilities (PWD), the report stated.

The statement partly reads that “Yiaga Africa deployed its 42 Master Trainers and 48 State Focal Points to all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to train its 774 Local Government Area Supervisors. The Long Term Observers have officially commenced observation of the pre-election environment by observing the ongoing display of the register of voters.

” Yiaga Africa’s pre-election observation aims to provide accurate information on the process, promote citizens’ engagement and participation, build early warning systems and provide recommendations to promote transparency and credibility in the 2023 General Elections.

Yiaga Africa’s observation of the pre-election period environment involves the deployment of 822 Long Term Observers across all the 774 LGAs in the 36 States and the FCT to track and report on activities of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), National Orientation Agency (NOA), Political Parties, Security Agencies and the involvement of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in the electoral process as well as tracking and reporting early warning signs for electoral violence

“This initiative also involves a comprehensive observation of the pre-election period which began with Continuous Voter Registration, Display Claims and Objections, tracking of early warning signs, activities of INEC, political parties (candidate nominations and rallies) and other election stakeholders, using advanced observation methodologies”.

Yiaga also added that the Long Term Observers will observe other INEC activities like training of ad-hoc, and deployment of electoral materials. The report stated that the observers across the nation will report the adherence of political parties with electoral acts and how their campaign activities.

“Specifically, Yiaga Africa’s LTOs will observe and report preparatory activities of INEC like the collection of Permanent Voters Cards (PVC), training of ad-hoc staff, and deployment of sensitive and non-sensitive materials amongst other activities including voter education campaigns leading to the elections. Citizen observers will also observe political party activities including campaigns and the display of posters while also reporting violations of the electoral laws during the campaign process. This includes attacks on campaign trails and rallies, destruction of posters, hate speech, and gender-based violence amongst others.

“Also, Yiaga Africa’s WTV has developed and is currently tracking a series of indicators that could potentially degenerate into electoral violence. This includes inadequate information on the electoral process, restrictions in the use of public facilities, stockpiling of arms, and unwarranted movement of people from one place to another amongst other indicators.

“Yiaga Africa will observe and receive reports on these and other pre-election activities by stakeholders from all its 882 Long Term observers nationwide, reports will be analyzed and disseminated to Nigerians and election stakeholders periodically.

“WatchingTheVote will deploy a comprehensive observation of the 2023 Presidential Election including systematic observation of voting and counting at a representative random sample of polling using the PVT methodology and employing information and communication technologies (ICTs) to rapidly transmit observer reports”, the statement said.