EU denies pulling out of Nigeria's 2027 election observation mission

The European Union has dismissed claims that the bloc turned down an invitation from Nigeria's electoral commission to observe the country's 2027 general elections, stating that it will send an Electoral Expert Mission to oversee the voting process.

Ambassador Gautier Mignot, head of the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), said in a statement on Monday that the bloc will send a mission of two to four independent experts in response to the Independent National Electoral Commission's (INEC) invitation in April.

Earlier, some media reports claimed that the EU decided to pull out from Nigeria's 2027 election observation mission, bringing an end to nearly two decades of election monitoring in the country.

The reports attributed the decision to worsening insecurity and alleged hostile treatment of EU observers and officials following the bloc’s observation of the 2023 elections.

Mignot, however, described the reports as “inaccurate and speculative.”

He said the EU’s decision on the size and nature of its election observation mission is based on the circumstances in each country and the resources available.

“The European Union decides every year on electoral missions to be sent to partner countries, issuing invitations to the EU and, if the decision is positive, the kind of mission to be sent to each of them, depending on individual situations and available resources,” Mignot said in a statement.

“It is on this basis that the decision to conduct an EEM in Nigeria has been taken and will be further consulted with the relevant Nigerian authorities for its implementation,” he added.

The ambassador also rejected the reasons reportedly given for the decision to deploy a smaller mission.

“The EU Delegation further underlines that the two alleged reasons mentioned in the press reports do not appear in the letter: these are pure speculations,” he said.

The EU had previously deployed a larger Election Observation Mission for Nigeria’s 2023 general elections, which issued recommendations on improving the country’s electoral process.

For the 2027 polls, the bloc will instead deploy an Electoral Expert Mission, made up of between two and four independent experts.

The EU said the decision would not affect its broader support for Nigeria’s democratic and electoral processes.

“This decision does not affect in any way the continuation of the implementation of the EU-funded project ‘Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria’ including its dimension of support to the electoral process,” Mignot said.

Nigeria's next general elections are slated for 2027, with voters likely to pick a president, members of the National Assembly, and other officials.