Over 89 million Nigerians have registered for NIN, says NIMC

The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) says more than 89 million Nigerians have been enrolled into the national identity database. 

Aliyu Aziz, director-general, NIMC, said this on Thursday at a press conference ahead of the 4th national identity day. 

The event, scheduled for Friday, is themed: ‘traditional institutions as critical stakeholders for citizens mobilization’.

Aziz said there was an addition of 82 million people to the seven million people who were enrolled when he assumed office in November, 2015.

“In this year’s identity day, we are partnering with the traditional institutions and their leaders to create awareness on NIN enrolment,” he said. 

“Since then, we have been growing the database at the average of two to three million monthly.

“The 89 million are the mainstream people so there are still remaining the local people in villages, petty traders, market people and artisan in rural areas across the country. NIN is the right of everyone.” 

Aziz said identity was a tool for empowerment, and greater use of digital identity can help bring development and coordination for better delivery of government services.

He said the commission had increased its equipment upgrade from 1000 to 29,000 nationwide, urging new enrollees to always be accompanied by literate people to reduce errors in the process of their enrolment.

Aziz, who attributed the collapse of NIMC’s data centres to the equipment upgrade, assured that the commission had acquired more equipment to improve on the enrollment exercise.

He also promised that the commission would soon allow people to do independent modification of their data through the NIMC app as soon as they were through with the integration.

The director-general, who said the commission charges some stipends for modification of biodata of enrollees, reiterated that the enrolment was free for every citizen and legal residents.

Aziz further urged the media to sustain the campaign of educating the populace in the hinterland, particularly in local languages.