FactCheckAfrica Launches Digital Democracy Suite to Boost Civic Engagement Ahead of 2027 Elections

A new set of civic technology tools aimed at enhancing public accountability and democratic participation has been unveiled by FactCheckAfrica, a civic media and digital democracy organization. The initiative, dubbed the Digital Democracy Suite, was launched Tuesday at Oroki Hub in Osogbo, Osun state.

Developed under FactCheckAfrica’s Digital Democracy Lab initiative, the suite comprises three interconnected products designed to bridge the accountability gap between citizens and government institutions: KedereAI, GovQuest, and The Power Deck.

“For too long, accountability has been treated as a spectator sport in Nigeria, something that happens to citizens rather than something citizens do,” said Lukman Adeoti, project lead of the Digital Democracy Lab, during the launch. “The Digital Democracy Suite changes that.”

The tools aim to address a critical challenge in Nigeria’s democracy: the inaccessibility of governance information to ordinary citizens. Many Nigerians remain excluded from democratic processes because governance documents and public finance data are often too technical or difficult to access.

“Nigeria recently passed an Electoral Act. It is a document of democratic significance and the vast majority of Nigerian citizens have never read it,” Adeoti explained. “What we have done is take that Electoral Act, take the Nigerian Constitution, and break them down into knowledge that citizens can engage with directly.”

KedereAI, the suite’s flagship platform, employs artificial intelligence to track local government allocations, budgets, contracts, and infrastructure projects using official public records. The platform currently monitors approximately N2.8 trillion in federal allocations across Nigeria’s 774 local government areas while indexing more than 35,000 government contracts and mapping over 18,000 infrastructure projects nationwide.

“A citizen in Osogbo can ask KedereAI in plain words exactly how much their local government received from the Federation Account last month, which contractors were paid for local projects, and whether those projects were ever delivered,” Adeoti said.

Importantly, KedereAI was designed with Nigeria’s digital infrastructure limitations in mind, functioning on low-data mobile networks without requiring downloads or high-end smartphones.

The second component, GovQuest, takes a gamification approach to civic education, transforming the Nigerian Constitution, Electoral Act, and civic concepts into interactive learning experiences. The platform introduces users to key democratic concepts such as the social contract, vote buying, constituency projects, and the Freedom of Information Act through scenario-based games.

“Designed for a generation that learns by doing rather than by reading, GovQuest turns foundational democratic concepts into interactive scenarios and challenges that young Nigerians actually want to engage with,” Adeoti noted.

Recognizing that digital access remains a barrier for many Nigerians, FactCheckAfrica also developed The Power Deck, a physical set of 24 civic flashcards for schools, community workshops, and grassroots programs. Each card combines a governance concept with a “Power Move” – a practical civic action users can immediately implement in their communities.

“From identifying abandoned constituency projects to exercising the right to request government records under the FOI Act, The Power Deck transforms civic knowledge from passive awareness into active democratic participation,” Adeoti explained.

The suite’s development involved extensive community input, with more than 1,000 journalists, youth civic actors, students, and community leaders participating in workshops across six southwestern states: Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, and Oyo. This co-design process ensured the tools addressed real accountability challenges faced by Nigerians at the grassroots level.

The initiative comes at a critical time, as Nigeria prepares for the 2027 general elections amid growing concerns about misinformation, weak civic engagement, and limited government transparency. FactCheckAfrica highlighted that while trillions of naira are allocated annually to local governments across Nigeria, many citizens lack the tools or expertise to verify how these funds are spent or whether public projects are properly executed.

“We believe that access to accurate information about how government operates and how public funds are spent is not a technical matter. It is a democratic right,” Adeoti emphasized.

FactCheckAfrica announced plans to begin school and community activation programs across Osun, Oyo, and Ogun states in the coming weeks to introduce students and civic groups to the platforms. The Digital Democracy Lab received support from the Nigeria Youth Futures Fund alongside civic and philanthropic partners including the Ford Foundation and MacArthur Foundation.