By Myke Uzendu
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, as part of efforts to strengthen institutional memory through improved archiving and documentation.
The workshop, organised by the Commission’s Voter Education and Publicity (VEP) Department, is themed “Preserving Institutional Memory Through Effective Archiving and Documentation.” It is being held in Abuja from Tuesday, September 22, to Wednesday, September 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 proper archiving as an important but often overlooked function of the Commission.
Haruna said effective preservation of records was necessary for future reference, institutional learning and comparative analysis of the Commission’s activities across different election cycles.
“It is a key leg in the department that we have our archiving done properly, for posterity, for reference, for lesson learning,” he said.
He noted that materials from previous elections were often left unpreserved at the state level, limiting INEC’s ability to retrieve information, compare experiences and build institutional knowledge from past electoral exercises.
According to him, the establishment of the Graphics, Library and Documentation (GLD) Division was aimed at addressing the gap and creating a more structured approach to records management within the Commission.
Haruna urged the participating Public Affairs Officers to take the training seriously, noting that 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.
