Date:
Location:
“Not Too Young To Win: Young People and the 2023 General Elections”
Speaker:
Ibrahim Faruk, Programme Manager, Governance and Development, YIAGA Africa.
Contacts:
Jacob Olupona
Olupona@fas.harvard.edu
Darren Kew
Darren.kew@umb.edu
Co-sponsored by the Center for Peace, Democracy, and Development (CPDD), UMass Boston.
This event is online only. Please click the "Read More" link for full instructions on how to attend this seminar.
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Abstract:
The youth demography in Nigeria represents a significant proportion of the population and has the potential to shape the future of the country. The 2023 general election was the second election to be conducted after the passage of the “Not Too Young To Run” legislation that addresses the constitutional limitation for youth candidacy by reducing the age eligibility for contesting for elective offices in Nigeria. A notable consequence of the age reduction has witnessed the emergence of youth candidates in political contests, especially in the House of Representatives and State Houses of Assembly. However, the 2023 general election witnessed a decline in youth candidacy according to data from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which shows that youth candidacy decreased from 34% in the 2019 general election to 28.6% in the 2023 general election. While young people maintained their dominance as the largest demography with the highest number of registered voters in the country, the same cannot be said for youth candidates in the election. Political parties nominated more youth candidates for legislative elections at the state level than executive or national assembly seats. Public perception of youth leadership affects the emergence of youth candidates in elections. Young people are perceived as inexperienced and ill-prepared for public leadership hence, the limits placed on youth participation in politics. To advance political inclusion and accountability in election, Nigeria requires comprehensive electoral and political (especially political party) reforms.
Speaker Bio:
Ibrahim Faruk has over 10 years’ experience in democracy, good governance, and cross-cutting fields with his areas of specialization and interests including but not limited to social movements, community organizing, indigene-settler conflicts, citizen and youth participation in democracy and governance, and gender issues.
At Yiaga Africa, Ibrahim has built the capacity of over 400 organizers in Nigeria and across West Africa who have been instrumental in leading advocacy campaigns and movements in their communities. His work has contributed to increasing the participation of youth in Nigeria’s political system through the Not Too Young To Run movement which successfully amended the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Ibrahim was born in Jos, Plateau State, where he also received his education. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Jos (2008) and a Master’s degree in Conflict Management and Peace Studies from the University of Jos (2015). Ibrahim is a regular contributor to national discourse through his appearances on TV and radio and his opinions which have been published nationally and internationally.
