IDEA Deliberative Town Halls with Nigerian National Assembly Slated for January 2024
Starting in January of 2024, IDEA will partner with the Nigerian National Assembly (NA) on a ground-breaking research study to further support Nigeria’s democratic consolidation.
IDEA’s goal is to identify whether Deliberative Town Halls, which have been quite successful in the US, the UK, and South America, can be adapted to produce similar “democratic goods” — i.e. greater trust in democratic institutions, increased citizen participation and engagement, and sounder policy — in a country with higher rates of income inequality, lower rates of literacy, and a shorter history of democratic governance.
IDEA will work with NOIPolls (a Nigeria-based non-governmental research organization) and scholar Marco Castradori from Princeton University, on a pilot initiative to assess whether participation in policy-focused Deliberative Town Halls with members of the National Assembly boosts civic orientation and democratic engagement. If the pilot is successful, Deputy Speaker of the House Benjamin Kalu hopes to hold additional Deliberative Town Halls in each of Nigeria’s 36 states, and to invite leaders from member countries of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), to participate in a cooperative deliberative constituent engagement initiative based on this model.
Nigeria has officially been a democracy since 1960, but had numerous periods of military rule in its early decades. Since 1999, the country has had uninterrupted democratic government, but its rates of corruption are high and civic participation low, according to international democracy monitoring groups. However, Nigeria also has an extremely fast-growing and youthful population, many of whom would welcome more opportunities to engage in democracy. Strengthening democracy in Nigeria now, is a long-term investment in the stability of what is predicted to be the 6th most populous nation in the world by 2030.
This study, which will involve randomized control groups and other rigorous scientific standards, will assess whether Nigerian citizens who participate in the Deliberative Town Halls demonstrate:
Greater faith in the democratic process as well as their elected representative.
Superior knowledge regarding the topics discussed.
Higher declared willingness to participate in future democratic activities such as voting.
In addition, the study will also document gains on the part of the participating Members of the NA, particularly:
Statements of greater appreciation of their constituents’ priorities.
More clarity on their own policy positions.
Confirmation of the need for more structured citizen engagement.
The pilot initiative is planned to take place in January 2024, with a full report based on the pre- and post-survey data as well as qualitative data from the town halls to be delivered to the participating NA members with a few weeks after that. Once the pilot has been fully evaluated and refined, additional Deliberative Town Halls in each of Nigeria’s other states could follow as soon as the same year. In the meantime, a delegation from the NA has been invited to attend IDEA’s Global Innovations in Democracy Parliamentary Exchange in April 2024 to share their experience and learning from this study and to learn from other elected officials from around the world.
