FELIX NWANERI writes on the move by the 10th National Assembly to ensure passage of the Diaspora Voting Right Bill that will empower Nigerians abroad to participate in the nation’s electoral process ahead of the 2027 general election The quest by Nigerians living abroad to participate in the country’s electoral process has been a recurring decimal even as more African countries continue to give their nationals in the Diaspora the opportunity to have a say in what happens in the polity back home. Section 77 (2) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) states that “every citizen of Nigeria, who has attained the age of 18 years at the time of the registration of voters for the purposes of election shall be entitled to be registered as a voter for that election” but Diaspora Nigerians have continually been shut out from the country’s electoral process. Unofficial estimate of Nigerians living abroad puts the figure at about 15 million but United Nations (UN) statistics puts it at 1.
7 million. No doubt, the UN figure is grossly underestimated, but many believe that it was time Nigerians living abroad are factored into the country’s electoral process given their contributions to the economy. Diaspora Nigerians not only contribute over $20 billion annually to the nation’s economy through foreign remittances, they also contribute through investment in productive activities that support economic growth and job creation.
According to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), remitt.
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