A non-governmental organization called Connected Development [CODE] has developed technology that would enable it to track and report on the Nigerian general elections’ electoral processes in real-time.
A project of the Open Situation Awareness Room (OSAR), the technology is known as Uzabe.
Seun Durojaye, CODE’s communications officer, revealed this in a statement on Thursday.
The group described the technology as an electoral tool that will give citizens situational reports on election procedures in real time, focusing on certain areas in various parts of the country.
“Connected Development (CODE) launched Uzabe, an election monitoring tool, to identify gaps in the Nigerian electoral processes and to provide a feedback mechanism that gives citizens real-time situational reports on election processes targeting specific locations within different parts of the country. This was done in recognition of the need for more transparent and credible elections in Nigeria.
“Uzabe is an Open Situation Awareness Room (OSAR) project that will offer in-the-moment intelligence, mapping tools, and witness accounts from our 20,000 trained observers dispersed throughout different polling units in Nigeria.
“CODE actively engaged in Nigeria’s general elections in 2015 and 2019 using the UZABE platform, deploying over ten thousand observers who reported in real-time using the geo-mapping technical tool.”
The presidential and National Parliament elections have been set for February 25, while the polls for governors and state houses of assembly will take place on March 11.
20,000 observers will be sent out, according to CODE, who will also use Uzabe technology to monitor the elections.
Chief Executive of CODE and Founder of FollowTheMoney International, Hamzat Lawal, spoke on ensuring free, fair, and credible elections. He claimed observers will use the Uzabe technology to monitor and witness the elections.
“We are leveraging technology to provide real-time reports to enhance intelligence collection during elections. In order to ensure legitimate elections and to build early warning systems in rural and vulnerable populations for the general election in 2023, we are sending 20,000 observers for this reason, according to Mr. Lawal.
According to Mr. Lawal, the organization has had a rare opportunity to learn from previous elections, which can assist guide the election monitoring approach.
