Technology, Cyber Security and the 2023 Elections in Nigeria: Prospects, Challenges and Opportunities

Nigeria’s Electoral Act 2022 legitimizes the use of technology in different aspects of the electoral process. Over the years, there has been a steady increase in technology adoption in the electoral process. This trend continued in 2023, after successful pilots in Anambra, Ekiti, and Osun State elections, respectively. Despite the exciting prospects, there are also potential risks and emerging challenges. This article investigates how technology has been deployed to conduct elections in Nigeria comparing it to other jurisdictions, notably Estonia. This study adopts a qualitative case study approach, synthesizing expert views and reviews from the available literature, official documents, and press releases to produce emergent themes. The article looked at the emerging legal, regulatory, and technical concerns from both a scholarly and industry perspective. The article also examines some potential risks in the emerging threat landscape, such as reliability issues, cybersecurity concerns, gaps in technological capability, information governance and data protection concerns, and others.