The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has projected that the number of registered voters in Nigeria will exceed 100 million ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The National Commissioner and Chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee (IVEC), Mohammed Haruna, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at the commission’s joint implementation meeting of the Departments of Voter Education and Publicity (VEP) and Gender and Inclusivity (G&I).

Haruna said the existing voter register stood at more than 93 million, adding that the figure was expected to cross the 100 million mark when the recently concluded nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise is finalised.

He said the development would further position Nigeria as Africa’s largest electoral democracy.

The meeting was organised to develop a communication and inclusivity roadmap for the 2027 general elections, with emphasis on ensuring that the elections are free, fair, credible, peaceful and inclusive.

With 151 days to the first phase of the 2027 elections, Haruna charged INEC information officers to ensure effective and timely publicity to mobilise eligible Nigerians to participate in the polls.

“Our job is to give the widest and most effective publicity to all five sets of elections to mobilise all Nigerians of voting age to choose their leaders. This job is at once simple and complex,” he said.

Haruna said the scale of the expected voter population required a high level of professionalism from INEC’s communication officers.

He urged them to acquire the skills needed to communicate electoral information clearly and in simple language, while ensuring that their messages remained civil and factual.

According to him, INEC officials must also have a good understanding of the Constitution, electoral laws and the commission’s guidelines.

“We must also be well-informed on other relevant legislation like the Freedom of Information and Data Protection Acts,” he added.

Haruna said the commission would have to build on the experience gained from recent off-cycle elections, including the just-concluded Osun State governorship election, to deliver what he described as the freest and most credible general elections in the country’s history.

Speaking, Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Adedayo Oketola, said the commission, under its Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, remained committed to credible and inclusive elections.

Oketola described the meeting as timely, saying its outcome would provide an actionable communication and inclusivity roadmap for the 2027 elections.