The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has approved the creation of a division on artificial intelligence at the commission.

INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education, Sam Olumekun, in a statement, said the Commission gave the approval at its regular weekly meeting.

He said the meeting considered the increasing relevance of AI to elections and electoral activities in Nigeria and across the world.

“Recently, the Commission attended several conferences with colleagues around the continent on the impact of AI on elections.

“These interactions were not only motivated by the concern over the use of AI to spread fake news or manipulate content online but also to utilise its benefits for data-driven decision-making, risk detection and mitigation, deepening voter services automation and geo-spatial intelligence in support of logistic optimisation for better material distribution and polling unit allocation.

‘‘Consequently, the Commission approved the creation of an Artificial Intelligence Division under the ICT Department to continue to harness the positive aspects of AI and mitigate its negative impact on elections.

“The Division  will enable the Commission to better coordinate and maximise existing technology investments through centralised AI governance.

“It will also enhance decision-making through data-driven insights, risk management and voter engagement,” Olumekun noted.

The commission stressed that the division would also strengthen electoral credibility through predictive analytics, automation and intelligent safeguards.

Olumekun added that this initiative put the Commission in the forefront of institutionalising AI capabilities within our ICT infrastructure.

According to him, “It is also an important step in the ongoing reform of the electoral process in areas that only require administrative action by the Commission.”