As Nigeria prepares for the 2027 basic elections, stakeholders have urged younger individuals and ladies to hunt elective places of work, take part actively in political processes and maintain elected officers accountable past election day.
They made the decision on the 2026 DARE Conference, organised by YouthHub Africa, the place discussions targeted on youth management, girls’s illustration, electoral participation and civic engagement.
The convention, which introduced collectively individuals from Abuja, different components of Nigeria and overseas, was held beneath the theme “Youth Power as a Force for Change on the Continent”.
Speaking on the occasion, the Executive Director of YouthHub Africa, Rotimi Olawale, urged younger Nigerians to take part in elections earlier than, throughout and after voting, stressing that democratic engagement shouldn’t finish when ballots are forged.
He inspired younger individuals to make use of lawful means, together with peaceable protests and freedom of affiliation, to demand accountability from public officers.
Olawale additionally urged them to interact with authorities on the state and native authorities ranges, noting that selections taken at these ranges immediately have an effect on their communities.
He mentioned the assumption that votes don’t rely shouldn’t discourage younger individuals from voting, acknowledging that electoral irregularities might happen however insisting that residents ought to train their proper to decide on their leaders.
On legislative efforts to extend youth participation in politics, he mentioned measures that develop alternatives for younger individuals to contest elections and take part in political processes must be supported.
He additionally recommended members of the National Youth Service Corps serving in election-related roles, significantly these working at polling items beneath troublesome and generally dangerous circumstances.
Ahead of the 2027 elections, Olawale referred to as for peaceable political participation and urged younger individuals to respect opposing views and reject intimidation and violence.
He mentioned residents should proceed to watch the efficiency of elected officers after elections, describing accountability as a important a part of democratic governance.
“Elections will come and go, but we have the next four years to hold our government accountable, and that, for me, is where the real work is,” he mentioned.
Similarly, the Director of the Legislative Mentorship Initiative, Solape Sonuga, mentioned the Not Too Young To Run Act, enacted in 2018, had widened alternatives for younger Nigerians to contest elective positions.
However, she maintained that legislative reforms alone couldn’t assure significant youth illustration, calling for sustained advocacy, political mobilisation and engagement by civil society organisations.
“Your vote does count. Do not be disenfranchised. Do not be discouraged. You matter in Nigeria’s democracy,” Sonuga mentioned.
She urged younger Nigerians to stay dedicated to political participation regardless of the challenges, including that these searching for to affect nationwide growth should be ready to work in direction of gaining political illustration.
A National Youth Service Corps member, Hafsa Yusuf, recognized insufficient funding as a significant impediment to youth participation in politics.
She mentioned aspiring younger politicians typically struggled to lift cash for campaigns, transportation, voter mobilisation and different bills related to contesting elections.
Yusuf mentioned extra alternatives had been wanted to allow younger individuals to take part in politics relatively than go away management positions largely within the arms of older generations.
On girls’s illustration, the Project Lead of the Young Feminist Solidarity and Climate Project at TechHer, Gladys Eleojo Omenefu, urged girls to pursue political workplace and take a extra lively function in decision-making.
She mentioned perceptions that votes wouldn’t rely or that election outcomes had been predetermined might discourage girls from taking part within the electoral course of.
Omenefu urged girls to problem such assumptions by contesting elections and pushing for insurance policies that deal with points affecting them, together with healthcare, entrepreneurship and entry to alternatives.
She cautioned towards assuming that girls in political workplace would mechanically symbolize the pursuits of different girls, stressing the necessity for extra girls to hunt management positions themselves.
“Nobody is going to hand this over to you. You just have to do the work,” she mentioned.
Omenefu additionally highlighted TechHer’s efforts to sensitise girls and supply safer digital areas for these advocating for his or her rights, together with journalists and feminine politicians.
She mentioned the organisation helps girls dealing with on-line abuse by means of psychosocial help, engagement with regulation enforcement businesses and efforts to take away dangerous content material from digital platforms.
She added that amplifying girls’s voices and highlighting their achievements might encourage extra girls to pursue management positions.
The stakeholders referred to as for sustained civic schooling, inclusive political participation and stronger accountability mechanisms forward of the 2027 elections, urging younger individuals and ladies to translate calls for for illustration into lively political engagement.
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