The Independent National Electoral Commission has called for the immediate release of outstanding funds under its 2026 budget, warning that timely financing is essential to avoid disruptions in preparations for the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman, Prof Joash Amupitan, made the call on Tuesday in Abuja while addressing a World Press Conference and National Stakeholders’ Meeting marking 100 days to the elections.
Amupitan said the scale of the 2027 elections required “robust financial backing and fiscal discipline”, noting that the Federal Government had continued to release statutory allocations to the commission.
He, however, said the outstanding funds were needed to enable INEC to implement its electoral plans without disruption.
“Executing a national election of this magnitude requires robust financial backing and fiscal discipline. The Federal Government has maintained its commitment to democratic governance through the timely release of statutory budgetary allocations to the commission, operating under a framework of transparent fiscal management,” he said.
“These funds have enabled us to meet international vendor obligations, finance the production of critical election technology, upgrade fiscal infrastructure, and sustain multi-stakeholder operational deployments nationwide. However, we expect the prompt release of the remaining budgets to ensure seamless execution of the activities,” the chairman added.
The funding request comes as the commission enters the final 100-day stretch before the presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for 16 January 2027. The governorship and State House of Assembly elections are scheduled for 6 February.
INEC needs ₦873.78bn for 2027 polls
INEC had told the National Assembly in February that it would require ₦873.78bn to conduct the 2027 general elections.
The proposed election budget covers operational costs, administration, technology, capital expenditure and miscellaneous expenses. The commission also proposed ₦171bn for its 2026 operations.
For the 2026 budget, the Federal Ministry of Finance provided a budget envelope of ₦140bn, against INEC’s proposed expenditure of ₦171bn.
The commission’s proposal included ₦109bn for personnel costs, ₦18.7bn for overheads, ₦42.63bn for election-related activities and ₦1.4bn for capital expenditure.
Funding for the 2027 elections has remained a recurring issue. In August, an INEC official disclosed that the commission had received only part of the funds earmarked for the polls and was still awaiting the balance.
Voters’ register rises to 103 million
Amupitan’s funding appeal came as INEC announced that the national register of voters had risen to more than 103 million ahead of the 2027 elections.
The increase followed the conclusion of a three-phase Continuous Voter Registration exercise, which attracted 10,772,421 new registrants. INEC said the new registrations were subject to biometric verification and other checks.
The commission said it had completed its Automated Biometric Identification System clean-up, while the preliminary display of the voters’ register for claims and objections is scheduled for 9 to 15 October.
57,000 new BVAS acquired
The commission has also stepped up its technology preparations, with Amupitan disclosing that INEC had acquired 57,000 new Bimodal Voter Accreditation System devices.
He said the existing BVAS machines had undergone software hardening, battery optimisation and biometric calibration to improve their performance and prevent accreditation bypass and manual manipulation.
INEC is also deploying an enhanced eEC8A system to digitise polling-unit result sheets and upload them to the INEC Result Viewing Portal.
The commission disclosed separately that it had established a dedicated Artificial Intelligence Division within its Information and Communications Technology Department to help detect anomalies and combat disinformation ahead of the elections. Automated AI auditing tools have also been integrated into its results verification process, with human oversight retained.
Amupitan said the commission had commenced other preparations, including the procurement of additional voting cubicles and operational vehicles, construction of dedicated BVAS storage facilities, renovation of offices nationwide and upgrades to its ICT infrastructure.
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