Nigeria is a country of over 200 million people with a rich cultural heritage and a diverse range of opinions and perspectives. Nonetheless, despite its size and diversity, Nigeria has faced significant challenges in promoting civic engagement and participation.
Fortunately, technology has emerged as a powerful tool for empowering Nigerian citizens and enabling them to participate more actively in the democratic process.
The Quest Times will examine how technology has aided civic engagement in Nigeria, focusing on specific examples of tech tools and platforms that have been particularly effective in promoting greater citizen participation.
Below are some tech tools and how they have impacted civic engagement in Nigeria
Online Petitions
Online petitions have emerged as a powerful tool for civic engagement in Nigeria, allowing citizens to mobilize around issues that are important to them and demand accountability from their government.
Online petition platforms such as Change.org have become popular avenues for Nigerians to express their opinions on a variety of issues.
One notable example of the use of online petitions in Nigeria is the #EndSARS movement, which emerged in 2020 as a response to police brutality and human rights abuses by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Nigerian Police Force. An online petition on Change.org, quickly gained traction during the protests across the country.
The #EndSARS petition, which called for the disbandment of SARS and an end to police brutality, garnered over 3 million signatures, making it one of the largest online petitions in Nigeria’s history. The petition was instrumental in raising awareness of police brutality and human rights abuses in Nigeria, and helped to galvanize support for the movement.
More recently, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Prof Mahmood Yakubu was a subject of an online petition due to his handling of the 2023 General Elections. Over 333,536 individuals have signed an online petition calling for the “US, Canada, UK, EU to CANCEL INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu Visa”
As such, online petitions will continue to play an important role in promoting greater civic engagement and participation in Nigeria.
Social Media
Social media has become a powerful tool for civic engagement in Nigeria, enabling citizens to connect with each other, share information and ideas, and mobilize around issues that matter to them. Social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram have played a significant role in promoting greater civic engagement and participation in Nigeria.
One notable example of the use of social media for civic engagement in Nigeria is the #BringBackOurGirls campaign, which emerged in 2014 in response to the abduction of over 200 schoolgirls by the terrorist group Boko Haram. The campaign, which was initiated on Twitter by a group of Nigerian activists, quickly gained international attention and helped to galvanize support for the safe return of the girls.
The #BringBackOurGirls campaign was one of the first social media-driven campaigns in Nigeria to achieve significant results, with the Nigerian government eventually agreeing to work towards the release of the girls. The campaign demonstrated the power of social media in enabling citizens to raise awareness of important issues and mobilize support for their cause.
More recently, the Obidient movement referring to the teeming supporters of Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi, started off Twitter. Initially dismissed as social media media noise, with former APC National Chairman Adams Oshiomhole once referring to Obi’s supporters as “four people tweeting in a room”, they proved their mettle on Election Day, with Peter Obi winning Lagos State, the home state of his APC rival, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, among other shocking results in favour of the LP.
Overall, social media has become a powerful tool for civic engagement in Nigeria, enabling citizens to raise awareness of important issues, mobilize support for their causes, and hold their leaders accountable. Through campaigns like #BringBackOurGirls and #EndSARS, social media has helped to promote greater civic participation and engagement in Nigeria, and has given citizens a voice in the democratic process.
Crowdfunding
Crowdfunding has emerged as a powerful tool for civic engagement in Nigeria, enabling citizens to raise funds for social causes and community development projects.
Crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter, GoFundMe, and Flutterwave have become popular channels for Nigerians to fundraise for a variety of initiatives, from supporting victims of natural disasters to building community centers.
One notable example of the use of crowdfunding for civic engagement in Nigeria is the Lagos Food Bank Initiative, which is a nonprofit organization that seeks to alleviate hunger and poverty in Lagos State. The organization used crowdfunding to raise funds for its COVID-19 Emergency Food Response, which aimed to provide food relief to vulnerable communities affected by the pandemic.
Through its crowdfunding campaign on Flutterwave, the Lagos Food Bank Initiative was able to raise funds from donors both in Nigeria and around the world.
The funds raised were used to provide food relief to over 50,000 households in Lagos State, demonstrating the power of crowdfunding in supporting social causes and community development projects.
Also during the #EndSARS protests in Nigeria, crowdfunding played a significant role in supporting the movement and providing resources to protesters.
Crowdfunding platforms like Flutterwave and GoFundMe were quickly adopted by individuals and organizations to raise funds in support of the protests. These funds were used to provide essential resources such as medical supplies, food, and water for protesters, as well as to support legal aid and bail funds for those who were arrested during the protests.
One notable crowdfunding campaign was the Feminist Coalition’s (FEMCO) fundraiser on Flutterwave, which aimed to support protesters by providing food, water, and medical aid. The campaign raised millions of Naira and thousands of dollars, with donations coming in from both within Nigeria and from the diaspora.
The Feminist Coalition was able to use these funds to provide direct support to protesters on the ground, and to support legal aid and bail funds for those who were arrested during the protests.
Open Data
Open data is a technological tool that has the potential to improve civic engagement in Nigeria by increasing transparency and accountability in government and other organizations.
Open data refers to data that is freely available and accessible to the public, allowing citizens to access, analyze, and use the data to hold government and other organizations accountable.
One example of how open data has aided civic engagement in Nigeria is the Open Government Partnership (OGP) initiative. The OGP is a global initiative that aims to promote transparency, accountability, and citizen participation in government. Nigeria is a member of the OGP, and the government has made several commitments to open data and transparency through the initiative.
For example, the Nigerian government has committed to publishing data on the budget, procurement, and public contracts on open data platforms, making the data available to the public for analysis and use.
Open data has also been used by civil society organizations in Nigeria to promote civic engagement. For instance, BudgIT, a Nigerian civil society organization, has developed several open data platforms that allow citizens to access information on government spending and track how public funds are used. BudgIT’s open data platforms, such as the Tracka platform, enable citizens to report issues, monitor government projects, and hold policymakers accountable.
Overall, open data has the potential to aid civic engagement in Nigeria by increasing transparency and accountability in government and other organizations. By making data freely available and accessible, citizens can access, analyze, and use the data to hold policymakers accountable, promote transparency, and participate in decision-making processes.
As more organizations and governments adopt open data policies, the potential for civic engagement and participation is likely to increase.