The European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES) is conducting an Electoral Political Economy Analysis (EPEA) of Nigeria with a thematic focus on Election Violence, using the 2019 election as the case study. This research is conducted within the context of the European Union Support for Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) component one programme.

The EPEA, which is an ECES copyrighted tool, provides an analytical framework towards identifying underlying factors, frameworks (both formal and informal) and dynamics that shape stakeholder perceptions, motivations, values and ideas in relation to electoral processes. It recognizes the complexity of electoral processes and the plethora of factors that influence it, which go beyond election administration, free and fair competition of candidates and observance of the right to vote.

In order to obtain broader inputs from stakeholders and considering the geographical variations in Nigeria, field missions are being undertaken across the six geo political zones of the country from 9th to 24th January 2021. This exercise seeks to identify contentious issues rooted in local peculiarities fueling election violence and solicits the perspectives of selected electoral stakeholders such as community leaders, youth associations, religious leaders and local CSOs and media. To achieve this, the ECES team has engaged stakeholders in Sokoto (North West), Maiduguri (North East), Ilorin (North Central), Uyo (South South), Lagos (South West) and Enugu (South East).