NIGERIA Plays a fundamental part to holding a World Vote as the most populous country on the African Continent. Suffers from a forbidding international reputation as being chaotic, corrupt and outright dangerous. Has a history of military dictatorship and recent democratic institutions. Objectives here focus on exploring the fastest way to reach the entire population of over 120 million people through official and grass-roots channels. Local Coordinator (Abuja): Prof. Ephraim Okon, Apex Services Limited Local Coordinators (Lagos): Tade Adekunle, Town Criers Limited Bobby Bright, Lagos Digital Village Onyinye Ndubuisi, Development Partnership Ugochukwu Nwosu, Base Network Africa Nsikak Obot Ekanem, Cosana

ACTIVITIES SUMMARY:

TEST 1: Can existing national voting infrastructures be used in holding the World Vote? Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Abuja.

On a fast track to see if we can incorporate the existing Nigerian voting infrastructure, Prof. Okon facilitated a meeting with Prof. Maurice Iwu, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The Chairman responded very positively to the project and assembled a meeting and press conference that included himself, two of his National Commissioners, the Secretary to the Commission, a team from INEC´s ICT division and members of the press. We presented the project in detail and held a test vote with the Chairman and his staff. It became clear that collaborating with INEC is a real possibility, meaning that a huge percentage of Nigeria’s population could be reached through the traditional voting system for the World Vote. Furthermore, the Chairman expressed a strong interest in INEC acquiring several of our satellite voting machines to be applied in local tests, with the intention of streamlining the current Nigerian voting system. The promise of such immediate collaborations illustrates the enormous potential of how a global democracy initiative supports local democracy efforts and vice-versa.

TEST 2: Can grass-roots organizations be effective in organizing the World Vote? Nigerian Council of Arts and Culture, Lagos.

Even before arriving in Nigeria, I was struck by the large number of possible collaborators that responded to my contacts via e-mail and phone conversations. Upon arrival in Lagos we were able to hold a planning meeting with all interested parties. This and subsequent meetings included representatives of several NGOs, many of which with a development and ICT slant. To test our effectiveness, we decided to organize a self-standing event with a zero dollar budget. We set out to inform the public through electronic-mailing-lists, SMS messages and simple word-of-mouth. In a matter of days, we were able to mobilize a crowd of over 200 people who signed in for the event. Many participants expressed a passionate interest in the topic of a World Vote. Once again, more people wanted to vote than we could accommodate. We packed up the voting machine while people were still showing up to vote. Imagine what is possible with a budget and time!

TEST 3: Can the mass media spread information about the World Vote?

As a direct outcome of the press conference at the INEC headquarters in Abuja, Nigerian National Television (NT) ran a 20-minute-long story on the World Vote Project. We view this broadcast as a special success, since it enabled us to rapidly expose the largest possible audience, in the most populous African country, to the concept of global democracy.

TEST 4: Can a World Vote be held in a location that is labeled as being "corrupt, chaotic and dangerous"?

Lagos has security issues, which can be recognized at night when entire neighborhoods are locked-down with gates, barbed wire fences and armed guards. The general state of affairs is similar though to what I have observed in many large cities around the world. We could move freely through Lagos and Abuja by car without feeling unsafe. Nigeria doesnÕt warrant such a forbidding reputation. Neither at the airport, nor at any point in our efforts to meet with officials or organize events, did we get asked for or pay bribes. Lagos is a dynamic metropolis and Nigeria possesses unlimited potential. The country has wide GSM coverage, meaning that communication is good and even voting results could be sent via this system. We were extremely encouraged by INEC's interest in satellite voting technology. We observed a high degree of technical know-how, which could allow for the building and assembling of the satellite voting machines together with Nigerian industry. A healthy civil society sector exists that offers an ideal ground for widespread collaboration.

NIGERIA SUMMARY:

Possibility of Holding Successful World Vote in Nigeria: HIGH.