CAN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT RESOLVE THE CHALLENGES ELECTORAL POLITICS IMPOSE ON GOOD DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE IN AFRICA? THE NIGERIAN EXPERIENCE, 2015 – 2023.

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed a growing enthusiasm for an accelerated deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology to strengthen weak sectors of human endeavour in Africa. AI technology is a tool or system that performs specific human-related intelligent tasks in all forms of human activity. Its benefits and challenges are well documented across the globe. This paper logically answered the question, can AI technology deployment convincingly resolve the challenges Electoral Politics (EC) imposes on Good Democratic Governance (GDG) in Africa? It used library research methods and drew experiences from the electoral politics of Nigeria and its impact on good democratic governance in Africa. The paper adopted the capture theory of politics (CTP) for the analyses
while contending that electoral politics poses a great challenge to good democratic governance in Nigeria and Africa, and it is exacerbated by Capture Politics (CP) rooted in the ‘winner takes all’ syndrome in African democracies. It discovered that there is limited penetration of AI in electoral administration that enhances GDG in the continent due largely to CP being rooted in the ‘winner takes all’ syndrome in African democracies. Therefore, the paper concluded that adding AI technology to the electoral process will not resolve the challenges of electoral politics related to engendering GDG in Nigeria, or Africa.