FG launches ‘improved mobile app’ to enhance SIM-NIN linkage

The federal government has launched the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) mobile application to enhance the subscriber identity module (SIM) and national identification number (NIN) linkage.

The federal government has also launched “tokenization” and “contactless enrolment” as innovative solutions to improve data privacy.

The products were launched at the banquet hall of the presidential villa on Thursday to commemorate the National Identity Day, organised by the NIMC.

Speaking at the event, Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, said the launch of the products is in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s desire to promote indigenous solutions that would be known around the world.

“All three innovative solutions being launched today are novel, not just in Nigeria, but also across the African continent, and this is a reflection of the commitment of Mr President to promote indigenous solutions that will also stand out globally,” he said.

“As part of our efforts to make it easy for citizens to link their NIN to their phone numbers, we developed a mobile app that allows users to do so without having to physically visit any telecoms company. It also enables users to download the improved NIN slips and use mobile IDs as a valid and secure means of identification.

“The tokenization solution is in line with the efforts of the federal government to enhance data privacy and data security of citizens and legal residents.

“It prevents verifiers and third parties from storing raw NIN of users. Rather, it provides a time-bound virtual NIN that is specific to the verifying entities.

“We will transition from the current raw NIN verification approach to one that uses tokenized virtual NINs, in line with the revised national digital identity policy for SIM card registration.

“Furthermore, to circumvent the challenges that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic, we developed a contactless Android biometric enrolment system that enables Nigerians and legal residents to obtain NINs after providing their biometrics through a process that is swift and contactless.”

In his remarks, Aliyi Aziz, chief executive officer (CEO) of NIMC, said as of September, over 63 million users have participated in the SIM-NIN linkage exercise.

The launch of the “improved” mobile application comes months after a mobile app for SIM-NIN linkage was launched by the NIMC.

However, at the time of the previous launch — in January 2021 — a few glitches were recorded, with some information on the app written in Afrikaans.