Moses Ofodeme
Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI) a democracy, governance and civic technology organisation has announced the deployment of 389 observers and operational personnel to monitor Osun State Governorship election scheduled for Saturday August 15, 2026.
The Executive Director of the Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI) Bukola Idowu made this known in a statement, explaining that the observers will be led by renowned human rights lawyer, Dr. Abiola Akiyode- Afolabi
The statement added that the faculty includes Abutu Yaro(Retired Assistant Inspector General) (Rtd.), former Deputy Inspector-General of Police and election security expert; Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, former Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) Deputy Secretary and electoral administration specialist; Prof. Ernest Uchenna Ereke, Professor of Political Science and specialist in democracy, governance and political analysis; Maupe Ogun-Yusuf, senior broadcast journalist and media accountability expert; Vimbai Mutinhiri-Ekpenyong, Pan-African broadcaster and political communications professional; and Babalola Olusola, public policy analyst and veteran election observer with experience across more than 30 election observation missions.
The statement added that the operational personnel will be available in all local government areas across the state to independently monitor the electoral process and provide credible, evidence-based assessments of the conduct of the poll.
Idowu stated that the distinguished team include national and international experts drawn from electoral administration, election security, democratic governance, public policy, media, political analysis and research.
“The mission is designed to strengthen public confidence in the electoral process, promote transparency and contribute to the protection of electoral integrity in Osun State’, the statement added.
The statement added that the organization’s mission observation will be guided by the principles of independence, impartiality, transparency, inclusion, accuracy, non-interference and the “do no harm” principle.
The statement stated that the organization equally announced a series of public engagements to keep citizens, media and other stakeholders informed throughout the electoral process, and these include an election day media briefing at 1:00 p.m. on August 15, a close of polls updates at 6:00 p.m. on August 15, and a preliminary statement at 11:00 a.m. on August 16, 2026.
The organization called on political parties, candidates, security agencies, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials, media, civil society organizations and citizens to conduct themselves responsibly.
The organization encouraged them to contribute to a peaceful, transparent and credible electoral process, and equally urged all political actors and their supporters to respect the rights of voters, refrain from violence, intimidation.
The mission leader Abiola Akiyode- Afolabi, Associate Professor noted that the deployment reflects the organisation’s commitment to ensuring that citizens and stakeholders have access to credible and independently verified information on the conduct of the election.
“Our responsibility as election observers is not to determine the outcome of the election, but to independently observe, document and provide credible evidence on the electoral process.We are committed to ensuring that our findings are based on facts, verified information and the highest standards of professional election observation’,she stated.
The governance expert explained that the mission will maintain a statewide presence across all 30 local government areas, 332 wards and 3,763 polling units, with observers monitoring key aspects of the electoral process, including polling procedures, electoral security, information integrity, election finance, technology deployment, voter participation and results management.
‘At the heart of the mission is KDI’s Election Day Data Room (EDDR), a secure and non-partisan information hub that will receive observer reports, conduct quality assurance and verification, maintain an auditable evidence register, monitor incidents, analyze trends, and produce verified public information throughout the election period’.
‘The Election Day Data Room will commence operations on August 12, 2026, and remain operational through the immediate post-election period. The facility will support the mission in ensuring that information received from the field is subjected to quality assurance and verification before being used in public reporting’.
Akiyode- Afolabi, who is the board chair while stressing the importance of independent observation in strengthening electoral accountability clarified that the mission is strictly non-partisan and non-interventionist.
The team leader added that the organization will neither administer the election nor certify its outcome, investigate electoral offences, direct security operations, or endorse any political party or candidate.
She emphasized that all findings, assessments and public statements issued by the mission will be based exclusively on independently gathered, verified and documented evidence.
The Board Chair pointed out that the credibility of the Osun State election would depend not only on the conduct of voters and political actors, but also on the professionalism,
“Every vote must be treated with dignity, every electoral procedure must be conducted transparently, and every institution involved in the process must act in a manner that strengthens public confidence. Our role is to observe without interference, document without bias, and report based on evidence’, she said.
Akiyode-Afolabi said Osun state election provides another important opportunity to strengthen Nigeria’s democratic institutions and called on all stakeholders to protect the integrity of the process through peaceful participation, professionalism, transparency and respect for the rule of law.
Meanwhile, record has it that since 2014, Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI) has implemented innovative programmes in election observation, election security, technology, civic engagement, policy research, and democratic reform.