By Faith Anisiobi, The Sight News
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has commenced a two-day capacity-building workshop for Public Affairs Officers (PAOs) from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to strengthen archiving, cataloguing and documentation practices across the Commission.
The workshop, themed “Preserving Institutional Memory Through Effective Archiving and Documentation,” is being organized by the Voter Education and Publicity (VEP) Department in Abuja from September 22 to 23, 2026.
Declaring the workshop open, the Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee (IVEC), Mohammed Kudu Haruna, represented by the Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Victoria Eta-Messi, described effective archiving as a critical but often overlooked function of the Commission.
Haruna said proper preservation of records was essential for posterity, reference and learning, noting that materials from previous election cycles were often not adequately preserved at the state level.
He said the newly established Graphics, Library and Documentation (GLD) Division was created to address the gap and urged the participating PAOs to take the training seriously, as they would also serve as GLD Desk Officers in their respective states.
“I want to enjoin us to please take this engagement and interaction seriously, so that by the time we go back to our respective states, we will be better prepared and positioned to begin to do the work of GLD,” he said.
The Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Adedayo Oketola, also stressed the importance of the training as the Commission prepares for the 2027 General Election.
Oketola urged the participants to apply the knowledge and skills acquired during the workshop in their respective states and support the Commission’s efforts to preserve its institutional records.
Speaking on the objectives of the workshop, the Deputy Director of Graphics, Library and Documentation, Perpetua Aligwara, described the exercise as a return to standard practice in records management.
She noted that some states could not readily produce documented records of past Commission activities, saying the situation could undermine the credibility and institutional authority of INEC’s information officers.
According to her, the Commission’s credibility depends not only on its neutrality but also on its ability to preserve and explain its institutional history.
She added that inadequate documentation could lead to inconsistent application of guidelines across state and local offices and increase the risk of litigation and public trust challenges.
Aligwara said INEC would establish a central and secure archive containing election guidelines, results documentation, litigation records, post-election reviews and pictorial materials from the Commission’s activities nationwide.
She said the initiative was particularly important as the Commission prepares for the 2027 General Election.
Participants are expected to undergo practical sessions on digital documentation on the second day of the workshop, while further engagements will be conducted to monitor the implementation of the new archiving standards across the states ahead of the 2027 elections.
