Business Idea #5 – Election and Campaign Tool for 2019 & Beyond

This daily series focuses on business ideas for those looking to launch new ventures in Nigeria (and Africa in general). The short ideas are archived here.

The Problem

Nigeria will hold general elections in 2019 covering local, state and federal offices. With the permanent voter card (PVC), pure rigging will be largely curtailed since every PVC will produce one vote and the total number of votes cannot exceed the number of issued PVCs [the anomaly between PVC and voters register .has been updated]. Consequently, politicians will need to take their messages to the constituencies because power will be in the hands of the electorates as old-style rigging like ballot stuffing cannot just happen. Communicating, collecting data on voters, sorting and aggregating them remain a huge challenge in Nigeria.

The Opportunity

Provide data systems for parties and candidates. Using these systems, the candidates and parties can reach voters for their votes, and communicate their visions. These parties and candidates will pay for the services, ranging from mobilization, voter sensitization, get out the votes, etc.

Action Roadmap

Use big data and analytics [this includes web, SMS, apps, field data, etc] to build election/campaign tools with capabilities to handle elections/campaigns from ward to presidential levels. The tool will have the following features among others (I detailed a possible system architecture here).

• Mission-oriented platform with secure and intuitive architecture core to win an election for the candidate
• Allow volunteers at polling places to update the camp’s database of voters in real time as people cast their ballots. This will help the campaign deploy resources more efficiently and wring every last vote by knowing those that have not voted.
• A data-driven tool to discover voters which can be targeted and persuaded to vote for the candidate
• Technology has three core modules – Field, Analytics and Digital – and unifies the voter file, various field offices, the analytics people, the website, and mobile elements.
• Targeted and efficient communication via email, SMS and other methods to voters
• Empower field workers with tools that provide on-demand political intelligence. In real-time, gives state’s offices information on volunteer activities – number of voters persuaded, their locations and feedbacks
• CtizenMatcher: Outreach opt-in Facebook plugin that target and can send direct messages like, “Your friend, Uche in Minna, hasn’t voted yet. Go tell him to vote.” It has an SMS version also.
• A tool that engages voters with measurable metrics and manages volunteers from the Campaign Headquarters.

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