The International Press Centre (IPC) and the Centre for Media and Society (CEMESO) have trained officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the South-West on electoral communication, misinformation management and voter engagement ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The two-day capacity-building programme, which began on Thursday, is being held at Golden Tulip Hotel in Ibadan, Oyo State, with a focus on strengthening the ability of INEC’s Voter Education and Publicity (VEP) leadership to communicate effectively with citizens and other electoral stakeholders.
Themed “Capacity Building for INEC VEP Leadership on Electoral Trust, Effective Communication, Legal Literacy and Voter Engagement,” the programme organisers said it is designed to enhance institutional effectiveness, public trust and electoral literacy ahead of the 2027 polls.
Speaking at the programme, INEC Deputy Director of Information and Publicity, Wilfred Ifogah, said effective communication was critical to ensuring that voters received accurate and timely information about electoral procedures.
Ifogah said officials responsible for communicating the commission’s policies and processes must have both accurate information and the skills required to explain them clearly, promptly and effectively.
He noted that Nigeria’s information environment was already saturated with conflicting narratives, making it increasingly important for electoral officials to distinguish verified information from false claims capable of undermining public confidence in the electoral process.
According to him, the training would equip participants to communicate recent improvements in electoral procedures, respond to public concerns and prevent misinformation from escalating into electoral crises.
He also warned journalists and members of the public against circulating unverified information, particularly artificial intelligence-generated content and deepfakes designed to mislead voters.
“Verify before you amplify,” Ifogah advised, urging journalists to confirm electoral information through INEC’s official communication channels or designated communication officers before publication.
He commended IPC and CEMESO for supporting INEC’s efforts to strengthen electoral communication and ensure that accurate information reaches different categories of stakeholders.
Earlier, IPC Executive Director Lanre Arogundade said electoral trust was built long before election day through the quality, accessibility and credibility of information available to citizens.
Arogundade warned that false claims and negative AI-generated content could spread faster than official corrections, making proactive communication, fact-checking and coordinated responses essential to combating misinformation.
He said discussions during the programme would cover crisis communication, media relations, implementation of the 2026 Electoral Act, misinformation risk mapping, conflict-sensitive communication and inclusive voter engagement.
Arogundade said the discussions were expected to generate practical responses to some of the challenges confronting Nigeria’s electoral system.
CEMESO Executive Director, Dr Akin Akingbulu, urged VEP officials to prioritise clarity, promptness and efficiency when communicating electoral information.
Akingbulu said the initiative would promote knowledge-sharing among participants while encouraging them to replicate lessons from the training in their respective states and local government areas.
He explained that the Ibadan programme was the first of four regional engagements, with subsequent sessions scheduled for Jos, Enugu and Kano.
The initiative is funded by the European Union under the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) Programme, Phase II, Component 4, Support to Media. The component is jointly implemented by IPC and CEMESO.
The organisers said the programme was intended to strengthen electoral communication, promote informed citizen participation and improve public confidence in Nigeria’s democratic process ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The regional training also forms part of a broader effort to build voter education and electoral communication capacity through regionally contextualised training, peer learning and knowledge-sharing mechanisms.
