“We are abundantly appreciative of their support and it will go a long way in helping to achieve the project goals.”
The Vote023 Initiative, which aims to reduce voter apathy in the general elections of 2023, has received support from the United States government through its embassy in Nigeria.
Vote023 Initiative, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), is a non-partisan incentive-driven voice call campaign to raise Nigerians’ awareness of civic responsibility, particularly as the 2023 Elections draw near.
This information was released in a statement on Saturday in Lagos by Mrs. Angela Ochu-Baiye, a Lead Collaborator on the Vote023 initiative and a Mandela Washington Fellow.
According to Ochu-Baiye, the embassy confirmed its support for the initiative in a Federal Assistance Award notice issued on December 15 to Emeka Mba, a tech entrepreneur and founder of Emergent Labs.
Ochu-Baiye said: “The Vote023 Team is delighted that the US Embassy in Nigeria is partnering with us to get our messages out to thousands of Nigerians via our IVR messages recorded in English, Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, and Pidgin.
“We are abundantly appreciative of their support and it will go a long way in helping to achieve the project goals.”
Ochu-Baiye claims that Vote023’s goal is to combat the worrying problem of voter apathy by creatively educating Nigerians and giving them compelling reasons to participate in the upcoming 2023 Elections.
She explained that the goal was to increase voter participation by deepening citizens’ awareness of their civic duty.
According to Ochu-Baiye, the project emphasized ideals and data rather than being associated with any political figure or party.
ALSO READ FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
Mba, the campaign’s visionary and solutions architect, stated: “We started Vote023 in November 2022 to promote voting culture in Nigeria.
“This assistance from the United States Embassy is a big boost to our campaign efforts.
“We are extremely grateful for the partnership while we look forward to more impactful ones.”
Mba called on other institutions and well-meaning Nigerians to take a cue from the US Embassy by supporting the initiative.
He said the project targeted more than 23 million Nigerians with 23 cogent reasons to vote in the 2023 Elections.
NAN reports that Vote023 was launched in November 2022, with a theme song titled ‘The Call’, produced by Gospelondebeatz and created by Angela Ochu-Baiye.
