In Nigeria, many consider politics dirty. Dirty in execution, and the lengths politicians go to get a seat in office. As a result, a large chunk of the electorate have developed a deep sense of indifference about aspects of Nigeria’s political activities. This disillusionment has grown over the years of disappointment, observing the political elite prioritizing their own interests over the electorate. This, alongside the blatant lack of accountability among public office holders is the primary obstacle of civil engagement in Nigeria.
Victoria Oladipo’s interest in politics first piqued when she was 8, it was during a Teachers’ strike. Although she was too young to fully grasp the implication and essence of the action, it roused her curiosity about the government and its duties. Years later, having earned a Master’s degree in International Relations from Covenant University, Ota, she founded Learn Politics. Using social media as a channel, Victoria and her small team of volunteers are currently on a path to closing the knowledge and engagement gap, by providing easily accessible political educational resources to the average, social media-savvy electorate.
What specific problem are you trying to solve with Learn Politics that sets it apart from other CSO organizations?
Our goal is to bridge the political education gap in Nigeria and democratize political education in the country. We want people to have easy-to access political educational resources at their fingertips. Nigeria currently operates a very complex democracy, and many people have little understanding of that. We’re hoping to become an avenue where people learn about politics, in the simplest and accessible forms.
How does Learn Politics intend to achieve this?
We take a multifaceted approach to this, and it revolves around three core strategies. Firstly, we’re engaging the public through informative and accessible social media content. Secondly, we conduct bi-monthly workshops and online seminars where we bring on experienced political analysts, and NGO founders, to share their knowledge and experience to our audience. Finally, we are in the process of developing comprehensive courses on politics, to be released next year. These courses will be structured into modules to explore different aspects f of political education, and tailored to suit diverse levels of political knowledge. For example, we have courses on elections, and political systems, and the audience can decide to take whichever courses of interest they’d like. To prepare them for this, we’ll be running an introductory course to equip them with foundational knowledge and our target audience for this are Nigerians who have completed at least secondary education.
Some people believe that political apathy in Nigeria is systemic and that the government benefits from this. What has been your experience so far with political apathy, especially amongst young Nigerians?
Certainly, the political apathy among young Nigerians is hard to miss. Historically, Nigeria does not have an engaging political culture that encourages the participation of young people, fostering a sense of disconnection. This detachment is one of the main reasons for the lack of interest among many people. A very good example is how the last election cycle discouraged a lot of young voters. What I’ve gathered so far is that we have young Nigerians at both sides of the spectrum. Those who are simply apathetic and do not care for any form of political education or activity. On the other hand, we have people who are very much interested. One thing I always encourage people to do is not give up just yet. Our democracy is still quite young at 24 years, so we have to keep showing up and not give up. A huge part of this requires us to equip ourselves with knowledge before we engage in other facets of the political landscape.
Can you talk to me about the niche challenges you’ve encountered so far with Learn Politics and how you’re navigating them?
The major challenge we’re having now is funding. Presently, we’re running on personal funds and available resources. Next year, we’re hoping to launch a website with a learning management system and we’re looking to raise money towards that. We’re also working on making our workshops available for people on YouTube and other streaming platforms for ease of access. We’re seeking donations and hopefully, we raise enough to cater to these projects.
So far, one of the primary tools of community building in your line of work is social media. It’s also one of the most effective tools. Now that it’s been established in one way or another, through successive admins that the Nigerian government is out to clamp down on its use via different social media bills, in light of the most recent one, how do you think this will affect your work at Learn Politics?
At the core of our work at Learn Politics, we’re very non-partisan and try as much to maintain that. Should the social media bill get passed, it will not disrupt our work at Learn Politics. That’s why we’re also expanding our community outside social media.
A good number of the Nigerian electorate aren’t avid social media users and may never come across Learn Politics online. What plans are in place to address this in the future?
As I said earlier, we’re prioritizing stakeholder engagement, and conducting public lectures is one of the routes we’re taking to address that. This will involve us going to the grassroots, engaging people, who do not have access to social media. Our objective is to establish partnerships with NGOs who are already making significant impact at the grassroots level such as those working with market women.
How can people get involved or support Learn Politics’ mission?
By participating in our bi-monthly workshops which feature seasoned and experienced facilitators. You can also support us by sharing our content with people who you think may be interested and finally, they can donate to our cause.