TheCable

The federal government says the national identity number (NIN) is compulsory for diplomats who will be resident in the country for more than two years.

In a statement on Sunday, Femi Adeluyi, technical assistant to Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, said an enrollment centre will be set up at the ministry of foreign affairs.

Adeluyi said the enrollment centre is being set up following a request by Geoffrey Onyeama, minister of foreign affairs.

“The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, has approved the setting up of a National Identity Number (NIN) enrolment centre at the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” he said.

“The desk will be set up by Tuesday, 19th of January, 2021. This enrolment centre will provide support for members of the Diplomatic Corps and will be managed by the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, through the National Identity Management Commission.

“The centre is being set up based on the request of the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, in order to simplify the process for diplomats.

“The National Identity Number is mandatory for diplomats who will reside in Nigeria for a continuous period of two years or more.”

The technical assistant said it is mandatory for lawful residents in Nigeria to have NIN.

“It is also mandatory for all other lawful residents in the country as stated in Section 16 of the National Identity Management Commission Act 2007,” he said.

“The Law has made it mandatory for Nigerians and legal residents to obtain a NIN since 2007. However, compliance has been low, until recently.”

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) had asked all telecommunication companies to disconnect SIM cards of all subscribers who have not integrated their national identity numbers with their phone lines by the end of January.