Next-Gen Solutions: How Youth-Led Civic Tech Is Transforming West Africa 

By Shamsudeen Abubakar

Young African leaders are harnessing the power of Civic Technologies to repair broken systems, combat corruption, promote transparency and accountability across West Africa. Through open digital tools and community-driven technologies, civic tech is bridging the gap between citizens and government, driving enhanced communication, better service delivery, improved decision making, and deeper political engagement.

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At the recent Civic Tech 2025 Conference, innovators from Nigeria, Mali, Senegal,and other neighbouring countries showcased groundbreaking digital solutions aimed at strengthening democratic participation and government accountability. These trailblazers are building tools for political education, fact-checking, legal advocacy, and citizen-driven anti-corruption reporting. This digital innovation is now becoming a catalyst for change across the region.

Educating and Empowering Citizens About Politics

Victoria Oladipo, founder of Learn Politics, is democratizing political education for Nigerian’s youth through online courses, interactive programs, and engaging social media content. Her Initiative aims to empower citizens to make informed choices, demand transparency, and hold leaders accountable.

“We are currently building a Learning Management System to make learning politics more accessible for Nigerian youth. The platform brings experts to enlighten citizens on political education across all boards,” Victoria shared.

A central feature of Learn Politics is the Citizens Handbook, a practical guide helping citizens understand their rights, responsibilities, and roles across every level of government —from senatorial districts to local councils.

Victoria emphasized that decision-making is not just for presidents and governors: “Citizens themselves play a crucial part in holding their representatives accountable and shaping decisions at every level.” she explained.

About Civic Tech

The Civic Tech Initiative is a Civic Technology Innovation Network (CTIN) that connects people using technology for civic activism. CTIN hosts events, shares knowledge, tracks initiatives through the African Civic Tech Atlas, and strengthens skills to improve government-citizens engagement and transparency.

Founded in 2017 in South Africa, it includes information and communications technology that supports the government with software built by community-led teams of volunteers, nonprofits, consultants, and private companies as well as embedded tech teams working within government. It grew into Making All Voices Count (MAVC), and serves as a hub for Civic Tech practitioners across Africa.

CTIN’s impact reached Nigeria through regional collaborations and by supporting local innovations like the Co-creation Hub (CcHUB) and BudgIT among others, which are key Nigerian civic tech organizations addressing governance and accountability challenges. These connections and shared goals helped spread the civic tech movement into Nigeria. It facilitates local projects aligned with CTIN’s mission to foster democratic participation and other public services.

Innovation Transparency, Justice, and Civic Engagement Through Technology 

Monsur Hassan, head of Innovation at the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Nigeria, tackles misinformation through a user-friendly WhatsApp Chatbot developed by Dubawa. This tool puts fact-checking directly in the hands of citizens, simplifying the verification of viral claims.

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The process is straightforward: users add the Dubawa number to their contact, start a chat, and send a “Hi” message to access options for verifying claims, misleading content , or exploring recent fact-checks. Dubawa’s integrated database also references fact-checks by multiple organizations, ensuring broad and contextual verification.

“Before you forward something to a thousand people, you can easily check in our WhatsApp chatbot and see whether it’s true or misleading. You can also report claims that might be harmful or unclear to people,” Monsur elaborated, giving users Dubawa’s WhatsApp number for easy access, thus—09015227915.

 “My team is utilizing a trend monitoring system to analyse reported and verified claims. This will help identify trends in viral misinformation,” he added.

On the issue of funding, Monsur revealed that Dubawa’s work is supported and funded by CJID —-a prominent media organization in West Africa.

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For Hawa Coulibaly Cisse, the founder TUWINDI from Mali, she developed a KENEKANKO App—-a secure  platform enabling citizens to report corruption in public services quickly. Complaints are verified and relayed to the appropriate authorities through a partnership with civil society organizations, the judiciary, and legal professionals.

“We want people to trust that when their cases are documented, it might not be today but one day it’s going to be prosecuted.” Hawa stresses, underlining the App’s mission to foster trust and accountability.

KENEKANKO App has been operational for three years, and available on Play Store and Google Play. It collects data on cases, including frequency and affected services. 

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She concluded that: “We are all responsible for what’s happening in our country. Let’s ensure we are not just paying taxes, but also tracking our money and holding public servants accountable.”

Global Trends in Civic Tech 

According to a Civic Tech report finale, the world faces numerous challenges, from politics and finance to health, education, and social issues. Despite these difficulties, civic tech in Africa has grown, driven by the need for innovative solutions. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of digital tools for communication and engagement.

Globally, civic tech trends open government, civic engagement, and leveraging technology to access critical information and hold representatives accountable. Citizens utilize digital platforms, including social media in order to amplify their voices, convene policy dialogues, and raise social change. Notable examples include the #EndSARs and BlackLives matter movements. They aim at harnessing civic technology to mobilize citizens and connect communities worldwide.

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Additionally, in West Africa, civic tech aims to address pressing issues like corruption, lack of transparency, and limited data access. To align with global trends, African governments must prioritize openness, accessibility, and citizens participation. Civic technology can bridge the gap between citizens and government, promoting inclusive, transparent, and accountable leadership, as stated in the Civic reports finale.

Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), rights groups, and social innovators are driving innovation in West Africa. It focuses on governance and public service digitization, citizen engagement and online voting, Cyber security, Big data and analytics and Civic crowdfunding for social causes.

AI Powered Access to Justice 

Legal access remains a huge hurdle for Nigerians—- something Oluwafemi Ajibade of Gavel, Nigeria, aims to change. Gavel is developing a PUDUS AI (Police Duty Skill), and a digital tool that connects victims of abuse directly to Police officers and local lawyers for urgent legal assistance.

PUDUS AI engine delivers and tailored responses in the Nigerian law system. It can be accessed via WhatsApp or could be scanned through QR code. It also featured voice-over options to support users with disabilities.

“Many people cannot access justice due to high costs or other barriers. By integrating local laws, and bringing AI support to WhatsApp, we’re making legal help truly accessible,” says Ajibade. 

Data-Driven Transparency and Advocacy: Oluwatosin Iseniyi Enlighten Youths

On a related front, Oluwatosin Iseniyi, Data for Society Advocacy Program Manager at BudgIT, Nigeria, drives accountability through evidence-based public financial data.

BudgIT’s latest AI innovation “BIMI,” —a Chatbot that delivers up-to-date statistics on public finances, economic indicators, and population figures in a conversational manner. Currently, BudgIT is working to support multiple languages, broadening its reach to even more Nigerians.

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“BudgIT is a digital hub for public financial management data that helps citizens hold the government accountable,” Oluwatosin noted, adding the link to their website thus; www.bimi.budgit.com

Seun Onigbinde, Global Director Budgit Insights

Seun Onigbinde, the Global Director of BudgIT, Nigeria, shares his insights on the state of Civic Tech:

“Civic tech is doing remarkably well, despite challenges. Young people are finding their space and building innovative solutions. It’s crucial for strengthening the relationship between citizens and government.”

Onigbagbo emphasizes that they need to build tools that make governance more accessible and foster a stronger connection between citizens and government . Gov Tech or Civic is a critical step towards achieving that.  

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Despite the challenges youths face, Onigbagbo remains optimistic. He stressed that the low population of educated citizens makes the system weak. He hopes to press harder on civic education to drive change.

BudgIT has been the biggest organization tracking government projects and ensuring transparency. Onigbagbo finally highlights the importance of collaboration and resilience.

“We brought together different Civic Tech innovators from various African countries like Liberia, Senegal, C’divore, Ghana, Mali, Borkinfaso, and others.” He affirms that funding is also a problem but if they work together, they can make the impact they want.