The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Yiaga Africa has launched a project tagged #SixtyPercentOfUs, aimed at mobilizing at least 60% of eligible young voters to register, collect their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and vote in the 2023 elections using traditional and non-traditional tools of political mobilization.
The project aims to leverage the large number of potential first-time voters who are young people: every year, an estimated 4.5-5 million Nigerians turn 18 (the constitutional age of electoral franchise), which translates to between 18-20 million potential ‘new voters’ from the 2019 general elections to the 2023 general elections.
UNDP Nigeria Resident Representative in Nigeria, Mohamed Yahya said that the increase in the level of first-time voters provides an opportunity for young people to determine the next set of leaders for the country through their participation in active citizenship.
“Young Nigerians and women play a critical role in democracy as they can act as catalysts for social change and good governance simply by participating in the election process. Their enthusiasm, resilience, and creativity needs to be harnessed, paired with the right platforms and opportunities for engagement, to help catalyze important changes in Nigeria’s political system” he said.
Mr. Yahya, added that although young people between the ages of 18-35 make up 51.1% of registered voters, only 46% of these voters turned out to vote in the 2019 elections. This missed opportunity for young people to shape governance in Nigeria can be reversed with a political mobilization strategy premised on innovation, inclusion, collaboration, consistency, and context-specific interventions.
“Change in a democratic society comes through the ballot box. For this initiative we think this is the way for young people to build the future they want to see for themselves and the future they want to see for the country. If change happens through the ballot box, then I encourage young people through the initiative with our partners to go out and register to vote, participate in the democratic process we see. We see democratic reverse in the region and Nigeria remains an anchor for democracy and inclusion, if we want democracy to flourish, if we want young people’s voices to be heard, the only way to do it is to vote”.
According to the Executive Director of Yiaga Africa, Mr. Samson Itodo, Nigerian youths have the numbers to determine elections, and more vote for good governance. “Nigerian youths have the numbers to determine elections, and more importantly, they can vote for good governance. Our desire is not just to push for huge numbers of young people to come out and vote, but to also vote for issues and for candidates that will deliver the good governance they yearn for. There are few dimension of this particular project, how do we mobilize young people to vote, we are working very closely with other organization, supporting their efforts, consolidating on some of the fantastic work they do to leverage on technology so as to get young people to vote. The power of 18 challenge which forms one of the pillars of this programme, and through this challenge, we are calling on young people across the country, who have fantastic ideals on how to get young people to come out and register and vote. The position that both institution have taken is to help these young people bring their ideas to life”.
The Director of Programs, Yiaga Africa, Ms. Cynthia Mbamalu, stressed the need for young people to register to vote. For the next election, young people have the number to literally change the outcome of the elections and determine who governs and lead them, but most times, a lot of young people young people sit back and want to protest and do nothing. The most effective form of protest is through the ballot. And the idea for #SixtyPercentofUs to get young men, young women, and persons with disability, to not just register to vote but also come to vote on election day.
The #SixtyPercentofUs Project aims to leverage this opportunity ahead of the 2023 elections and will host a number of activities that will create platforms for civic engagement and access to information, including the recently launched Power of 18 Challenge.
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