Ahead of the February 25, 2023 Presidential and National Assembly elections, the Director General, National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies, NILDS, Prof. Abubakar O. Sulaiman has approved the deployment of about 400 observers to participate as Institutional Election Observers across the country.

This is in conformity with NILDS, Amendment Act. 2018, Section 2 (j) which empowers the Institute to observe elections.

According to a statement from the Institute, the exercise, which will take place across the Senatorial Districts, is in conformity with (NILDS), Amendment Act. 2018, Section 2 (j) which empowers the Institute to observe elections and Section 2 (l) of the Principal Act as amended – to “sensitize the Nigerian public to imbibe, support and defend democratic and legislative ethics ”.

The exercise will enable experts at the Institute to participate and assess the conduct of the elections while the report that stems from it is expected to provide useful input into future improvements on the electoral process in the counrty.

This is not the first time the Institute is participating in the Observation of Elections in Nigeria; the premier institution actively participated as observer during the 2015, 2019 General Elections as well as all the off season elections and submitted its observations and recommendations to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC

NILDS, which is an organ of the National Assembly is a non-partisan institution, which remains a center of excellence on legislative practice, procedure and democracy, a core center for capacity development of democratic institutions, committed to providing technical support services and manpower development for the advancement of democratic governance in Nigeria and beyond.