The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has disclosed that 137,487 Persons with Disabilities, PWDs, are captured in its available voter data.
It also expressed commitment to strengthen grassroots mobilisation and remove barriers ahead of the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, stated this at a national strategy engagement between INEC, the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities, JONAPWD, Organisations of Persons with Disabilities, OPDs, and disability cluster heads, focused on improving sensitisation, voter education and turnout among PWDs.
Represented by the Acting Chairman and National Commissioner, Prof. Rhoda Gumus, said the data, obtained before the introduction of the Automated Fingerprint Identification System, comprised 13,080 visually impaired persons, 9,299 hearing-impaired persons, 30,561 persons with albinism, 19,430 persons with physical impairments and 54,941 people under other disability categories.
Gumus said the figures underscored the need for sustained and targeted engagement to ensure that PWDs were adequately informed, mobilised and supported throughout the electoral process.
She said the Commission would replicate the outcome of the national engagement at the state level through Resident Electoral Commissioners, Electoral Officers and other officials, while urging JONAPWD and OPDs to take ownership of sensitisation within their respective clusters.
“The Commission is committed to building an electoral process that is inclusive, accessible, participatory and responsive to the needs of all eligible citizens,” Gumus said, stressing the need to strengthen collaboration with disability organisations to ensure that no eligible voter was left behind.
The Director, Gender and Inclusivity Department, Mrs Lakunuya Dorothy Bello, identified access to voter information, voter education, mobilisation and electoral facilities as some of the challenges still confronting PWD participation.
She said sensitisation campaigns must therefore be broad in reach while remaining targeted and accessible to different disability groups.
INEC said measures already introduced to improve accessibility include Braille ballot guides, magnifying glasses, the EC30 PWD form and sign-language interpretation during collation activities.
The Executive Director of Inclusive Friends Association, Grace Jerry, called for a grassroots mobilisation model that would map PWD networks and gaps, deliver voter education in accessible formats and monitor barriers before and during Election Day.
She urged stakeholders to extend sensitisation beyond formal disability organisations to wards, Local Government Areas, markets, campuses, faith-based and community spaces, as well as digital platforms.
The National President of JONAPWD, Comrade Abdullahi Aliyu Usman, commended INEC’s engagement but called for more frequent strategic consultations, warning that a single national engagement would not be sufficient to secure broad participation by PWDs in the 2027 elections.
Similarly, the Executive Secretary of the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities, Bar. Ayuba Gufwan Burki, identified mobility constraints, limited access to assistive devices and restrictions on movement as continuing barriers to electoral participation.
Founder and Chief Executive Officer of TAF Africa, Jake Epelle, also called for improved accessibility at polling units and stronger grassroots mobilisation through OPD cluster heads across the states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The engagement concluded with the adoption of a communique outlining commitments and action points for strengthening voter education, mobilisation, accessibility and collaboration ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The data-driven angle makes the 137,487 figure the news peg while keeping the story focused on the practical challenge of converting voter registration into meaningful participation.
