The European Union has decided against sending a full election observation mission to Nigeria for the 2027 general elections, citing security concerns and past treatment of its officials.
The decision ends more than two decades of large-scale EU observation missions in the country, according to reports based on correspondence with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Instead of deploying long-term and short-term observers across states, the bloc plans to station only a small team of officials in Abuja to monitor developments and report to Brussels. Sources familiar with the exchange put the number at around three.
The EU cited the worsening security situation nationwide and what it described as the hostile treatment of its observers and officials after the publication of its final report on the 2023 elections.
That 2023 report had drawn criticism and sparked protests at the EU’s Abuja office. Previous full missions covered elections in 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023.
The scaled-back presence means there will be no chief observer and no widespread deployment on election day, marking a significant shift in the EU’s engagement with Nigeria’s electoral process.
