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Tag: NIMC

  • Kidnapping: NIMC, NCC collaborate with security agencies on solutions

    Kidnapping: NIMC, NCC collaborate with security agencies on solutions

    The Director-General of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Abisoye Coker-Odusote says NIMC and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) are collaborating with security agencies to track down kidnappers and rescue the victims.

    The NIMC boss spoke at the Stakeholders Consultation Forum in Nigeria Digital Identification for Development Project (NDID4D) on Thursday, in Abuja.

    Odusote said they were going to use the National Identity Numbers (NIN) and Subscribers Identity Modules (SIM) databases to track them down.

    The forum is with the theme, “Fostering Inclusion and Feedback Mechanism in the Nigeria Digital (ID4D) Project.”

    Odusote declined to give details of the collaboration, saying some gaps had been identified and all stakeholders were working to close up such gaps to address the security problems plaguing the country.

    She said loopholes that had been identified were being plugged, while NIMC and NCC were also collaborating with security agencies to ensure infrastructure and other necessary information were harnessed to address the challenges.

    Odusote, represented by her Technical Assistant, Mrs Ayobami Abiola, said that the essence of NIN for citizens was to reduce incidences of corruption and implement strategic development plans.

    According to her, countries that have completed their national identity databases have been able to deploy them for development and implement social security programmes successfully.

    Odusote said that NIMC would strengthen relationships with key stakeholders to ensure that established functional structures across states, local government, ward, and community levels could make enrolment for NIN more accessible to the people.

    She said that more vulnerable persons, especially persons with disabilities, as well as people who were in various Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in the country, would be captured in the National Identity Database.

    She said President Bola Tinubu had expressed concerns about fragmented identity and the need for Nigeria to have a unified system, saying the administration was committed to changing the narratives of national identity for all Nigerians.

    “The President has expressed worry over our fragmented identity system, which is causing the country huge losses in expenditure and has given us marching orders to ensure we integrate and unify our identity system.

    “To match words with action, the President on assumption of office as Commander-in-Chief signed the Nigeria Data Protection Bill, now Nigeria Data Protection Act.

    “This was to provide the needed legal framework for the protection and privacy of the data of Nigerians and legal residents.

    “The NIN is free and for everyone. At the NIMC, we frown at all forms of extortion and will ensure anyone found culpable of extorting any potential enrollee is made to bear the full weight of the law.

    “Since my assumption of office as the D-G of NIMC, I have led several sting operations to enrolment and regional coordination centres across the country.

    “Some of our staff who were found extorting enrollees were handed over to law enforcement agents for prosecution.”

    Odusote explained aside from working to remove all impediments and barriers to enrolment for a national ID, NIMC was working closely with the NDID4 with support from the World Bank,

    Others are the French Development Agency (AFD), and European Investment Bank (EIB) in implementing series of sustainable and innovative reforms among others.

    “The goal is to remove all current challenges and difficulties that people face in enrolling for IDs, fostering a robust, seamless, and more inclusive enrolment system where ID is provided for everyone, and no one is left behind.

    “We are also committed to addressing the challenges and barriers that vulnerable individuals and groups, including women, persons with disabilities, IDPs and refugees face in obtaining the NIN.

    “It is needed to facilitate their access to critical services necessary for their well-being.

    “NIMC is fashioning ways to clear the backlog of enrolment fees owed to enrolment partners.

    “It has also developed a robust business model to incentivise all partners particularly those who will be conducting enrolment in remote and hard-to-reach communities and locations.”

    She said that over 300 representatives of the revalidated enrolment agents drawn from every part of Nigeria, were undergoing training on several aspects of the enrolment process.

    “This is to equip them with all necessary skills and information needed to help them interact well with applicants and integrate into communities they are commissioned to carry out enrolment.

    “We will be working on amending the NIMC Act to ensure it is in consonance with the current digital realities to ease integration with other foundational ID agencies like the National Population Commission.

    “We are also working tirelessly on upgrading the enrolment software and ensuring the training and retraining of all licensed enrolment partners,” she said.

    Earlier, Solomon Odole, the Project’s Coordinator, NDID4D, stated that the forum was aimed at engaging stakeholders of the reforms that NIMC was making to ensure the NIN enrollment and issuance became easy and seamless for everyone.

    Odole also said the idea behind the forum was to ensure that vulnerable and marginalised individuals and groups were given visibility and adequately considered in the identity system.

    ‘‘This workshop is not just about professional development but also an opportunity to foster meaningful connections and build lasting relationships.

    “The workshop was aimed at fostering collective efforts among various stakeholders to foster a robust and inclusive foundational ID for every Nigerian and legal resident devoid of any form of discrimination or hindrance that ensures their access to services.”

    Participants at the workshop were: representatives of CSOs, Persons with disabilities, vulnerable and marginalised groups, relevant public institutions, international donor organisations, and funding partners.

  • National Identification Number is free – NIMC DG

    National Identification Number is free – NIMC DG

    The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has advised Nigerians to report incident of extortion or harassment in the course of enrolment for National Identification Number (NIN) to its offices.

    The NIMC Acting Director-General Mrs Abisoye Coker-Odusote said this in a statement on Monday in Abuja.

    “NIMC has been made aware of certain reports involving some Front End Partners (FEPs) who were allegedly extorting money from members of the public for NIN enrolment.

    “Even as they are currently being subjected to a revalidation process.

    “You can reach out to our official channels, including our website, social media platforms, or our helpline, to report such incidents.

    “Your reports will help us ensure that the NIN enrollment process remains free and accessible to all Nigerians,” she said.

    Coker-Odusote added that the commission remained committed to its mission of providing a secured and universally recognised identity management system for Nigeria.

    She said that NIMC would not tolerate any act of extortion or harassment of citizens in enrolment centres.

    “We want to strongly condemn and address such unlawful activities. It is crucial to emphasise that these actions are not only unethical but also illegal.

    “We have a zero-tolerance policy for such misconduct, anyone found engaged in such activities will face the full force of the law,” she said.

  • FG considers moving NIMC to interior ministry

    FG considers moving NIMC to interior ministry

    The Federal Government of Nigeria is considering moving the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to the   Ministry of Interior, TheNewsGuru.com can exclusively report.

    This is to aid the smooth processing of international passport in the  country.

    Already,  NIMC is supervised by the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy.

    On assumption of office, the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, promised to work towards having the NIMC in the ministry for proper coordination of identity data of Nigerians.

    A source who spoke on condition of anonymity said that a meeting was held recently at the ministry with staff of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

    He said the meeting was to harmonise the activities of the two government organisations.

    “The process is ongoing and should be finalised by Friday because there is another meeting scheduled for Friday,” the source at the ministry said.

    The ministry spokesperson, Ajibola Afonja, could not be reached for comments as of the time of filling this report.

  • Bosun Tijani reacts after emerging Communications Minister

    Bosun Tijani reacts after emerging Communications Minister

    President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday approved the appointment of Bosun Tijani as Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Tijani is a Nigerian-British entrepreneur and co-founder of Co-Creation Hub (CcHUB), a leading Pan-African innovation and technology centre.

    President Tinubu assigned Tijani as Communications Minister after an excruciating screening by the Senate.

    During his ministerial screening, the Senate made reference to one of Tijani’s past tweets, which raised questions about his nationality. He was also perceived to have disrespected the Senators when he called them ‘morons’ in one of his old tweets.

    However, after surviving the ministerial screening scare and following his appointment as Communications Minister, Tijani is now faced with the onus task of creating and formulating policies that will propel the Nigerian economy to a digitalized economy.

    Meanwhile, the 46-year-old tech entrepreneur and investor has said he looks forward to raising the level of productivity across the Nigerian economy through the smart application of technology.

    “It’s an exciting time to build a bigger and better future for all Nigerians.  Grateful to President Bola Tinubu for the opportunity to join his team working to deliver a more inclusive and prosperous Nigeria.

    “I look forward to working with all stakeholders to raise the level of productivity across our economy through the smart application of technology,” Tijani stated.

    As Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Tijani will oversee the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and Galaxy Backbone.

    TNG reports the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) and Nigeria Communications Satelite Limited are all also under the purview of Tijani as Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy.

  • 44% of NIN enrollees are females – NIMC

    44% of NIN enrollees are females – NIMC

    The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) says the National Identification database shows a low coverage and gender gap in the registration project, considering the notion that there are more women than men.

    The Director-General of NIMC, Mr Aliyu Aziz, said this during the Inclusion for all (I4ALL) Dialogue on Thursday in Lagos.

    The event has as its theme; “Digital ID for the Last Mile – Enabling Access to Digital ID for Rural Female Agricultural Workers”.

    According to him, over 101 million persons have registered for the National Identification Number (NIN), while only 44 per cent enrollees are females.

    Aziz said that a gender study conducted by NIMC and the World Bank, identified some of the barriers to accessing ID as lack of awareness, none value or use of ID, accessibility issues.

    Others are, time taken to
    register, lack of documentation, biometric capture issues, among others.

    He said that robust, inclusive and responsible foundational ID systems could be transformative for the poorest and most vulnerable population.

    Aziz noted that would also enable the population gain access to basic health care, education and social safety
    nets; facilitate financial inclusion and foster the empowerment of
    people, including women and girls.

    Similarly, Zaina Sore, Head, Capacity Development, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), emphasised the significance of digital identity in empowering and deepening financial inclusion for rural women and transforming their livelihoods.

    Sore who presented the findings from the targeted research study on “Access to Identity, Empowerment, Livelihood, and Financial Inclusion of Rural Female Agricultural Workers and Traders in Nigeria”.

    She noted that many of the women engage in different agricultural activities and trading, particularly in the informal sector.

    “It is important that we better understand their needs and challenges to tailor the services that will lead to greater inclusion and economic empowerment,” she said.

    The study, commissioned to IITA by I4ALL, was carried out in the first quarter of the year in Kano, Oyo and Rivers States.

    It revealed some new insights and validated pre-existing data insights from I4ALL’s analysis of the 2020 Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access (EFInA) A2F (Access to Finance) dataset.

    “For instance, Kano State recorded higher levels of NIN ownership by 77 per cent among the respondent groups, compared to Oyo which has 58.1 per cent and Rivers with 46.6 per cent, contradicting our hypothesis of lower enrolment rates in the North.

    “However, the research highlighted how socio-cultural norms can be used as a deliberate strategy to drive female enrolment in the North.

    “The barriers to NIN enrolment remained consistent, from the cost of transportation to distance from enrolment centres and tedious enrolment processes,” she said.

    Commenting on the findings, Chinasa Collins-Ogbuo, Convener and Head, I4ALL, said universal access to formal identification requires an intentional focus on the most vulnerable Nigerians – likely to be poor female farmers in rural communities.

    Collins-Ogbuo said that NIMC had done a great job with the momentum achieved towards ID enrolment of Nigerians, stressing that it must be maintained.

    “Reaching the last mile is the most challenging part; specific and targeted approaches must be designed and implemented to reach them successfully and leave no one behind.

    “NIMC identity strategy clearly recognises the need to ensure that excluded populations are included in the enrolment process, and this research reinforces that need, demonstrating the urgency for action.

    “The poorest excluded populations are most often the hardest to reach, and can be the most resistant to participation, but stand to gain the most from the range of government and financial services that inclusion enables,” she said.

    She said that to achieve NIMC’s ambitious enrolment targets, all relevant stakeholders in the public and private sector must work together to ensure that the enrolment system reaches those who need access to the services the most; the vulnerable and marginalised.

    “The Inclusion for all Dialogues event highlighted the importance of collective efforts in creating an inclusive and equitable society.

    “By empowering rural female agricultural workers with digital identification, we can unlock their potential, enhance economic productivity, and drive positive change for the entire nation.

    “Our aim is to cultivate a strategic platform of cross-cutting actors with a shared goal to uncover the links that exist between income level, identity ownership and financial inclusion in order to identify opportunities to accelerate the pace of digital financial inclusion,” she said.

    According to Collins-Ogbuo, I4ALL remains committed to its mission of fostering financial inclusion for all Nigerians and will continue working with partners, stakeholders, and policymakers to address these pressing challenges.

  • 427, 962 Nigerians abroad get NIN – NIMC

    427, 962 Nigerians abroad get NIN – NIMC

    The National Identity Management Commission has revealed that the number of Nigerians with National Identification Numbers have risen to 25.17 per cent in May 2023.

    Recall that NIMC launched its diaspora enrolment exercise in 2019.

    According to the May 2023, NIMC update, the number of diasporan Nigerians in its database hit 427,962, with 178,799 females and 249,163 males.

    427,962 Nigerians have so far been registered since it was  launched in 2019 according to NIMC.

    There were at least 1.7 million Nigerians living in the diaspora according to the World Bank. The global bank disclosed this in its ‘The World Development Report 2023: Migrants, refugees, and societies’, report.

    It said, “At a lower level of income, Nigeria is home to almost 1.3 million immigrants and is the origin for 1.7 million emigrants.”

    When NIMC launched the service, it said the exercise was aimed at capturing Nigerians living outside the country into the National Identity Database, ensuring they benefitted from the owning NINs. Without NINs, diasporan Nigerians could not renew their passports, and enrolment was not free.

    NIMC noted that “Nigerians abroad, however, also have the choice of enrolling for free whenever they travel back to Nigeria, provided they have valid passports.

    “Where, however, their passports have expired, they must obtain their NINs as a prerequisite for renewal of their Nigerian international passports or in order to acquire new passports.”

    The service is available in 77 foreign countries according to a list on NIMC’s website. 40 of these countries are African, nine are in Asia/Middle East, 23 are in Europe/Oceania, and five are in the American region.

    Meanwhile, NIMC has now captured over 100 million Nigerians into its database. It said, “NIMC’s enrolment figures as of May 27, 2023 currently stand at over 100 million unique records. The highest cumulative enrolment figure of over 10.9 million was recorded in Lagos State.”

    So far, 43.28 million females and 56.75 million males have NINs. The top five states with NIN enrolments are Lagos with 10.92 million, Kano with 8.84 million, Kaduna with 6.19 million, Ogun with 4.19 million, Oyo with 3.89 million.

  • FG approves banks to issue debit cards that double as identity cards

    FG approves banks to issue debit cards that double as identity cards

    The Federal Government says Nigerians can now request their commercial banks to issue them with a debit card which doubles as their National Identity Card at no extra cost.

    Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof Isa Pantami, who disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja, said the approval was obtained at the meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

    The meeting was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    He explained that the approval followed a memo from the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) allowing banks to print a multipurpose debit cards that double as National identity cards.

    He said: ”It is going to be a form of multipurpose card where it will serve as your national identity card on one hand and also your bank card on the other hand, either Mastercard, Visa or any other kind of card.”

    According to Pantami, although the NIMC Act 2007 only mandates Nigerians to have a National Identity Number and not necessarily a printout card, demands for cards have swelled nonetheless.

    “As in the NIMC Act 2007, section 27, what is mandatory for our citizens and legal residents is the acquiring of the National Identity Number, not the card. However, the card is optional.

    “But many citizens, particularly those living in rural communities, always go to NIMC offices complaining that they need the card at hand, even though it’s optional.

    “To make it easier, NIMC last year, we introduced a smart ID card you can download from NIMC app. It is just a smart card. You don’t need to have it physically, but that is becoming difficult for our people living in rural communities.”

    To ease the difficulty, Pantami said NIMC had partnered with the Central Bank of Nigeria ”so that citizens who are interested in having a card at hand can easily go to the relevant banks.”

    According to him, the bank is permitted to print the card along with either Mastercard or Visa card.

    ”It is going to be a form of a multipurpose card that will serve as your national identity card on one hand and also your bank card on the other. And based on the agreement, it is without any additional costs on our citizens.

    “So when you apply for a card at your bank, you can indicate that ‘I want this card to be multiple purpose where it will serve as my bank card and also my national identity card’.

    ”Both of them are going to be printed on the same card and it is going to serve the same purposes without any additional costs,”

    The Minister disclosed that NIMC and the CBN signed a nondisclosure agreement to protect the privacy and confidentiality of card applicants.

    “NIMC and the central bank signed a nondisclosure agreement where your privacy and your confidentiality must be respected in the course of providing the card for you.

    “When you apply for the card, the bank will apply online to NIMC through their database.

    ”When they verify and confirm that your record in the database is in alignment with your record in NIMC database, it will be permitted and the card is going to be printed for you immediately,” the minister added.

    The Minister also said that FEC also approved a memo proposing the deployment of an automated system to integrate NINs with individual SIM cards.

    The system, he noted, would consolidate the implementation of the NIN-SIM linkage.

    He said “As we all know that previous administrations made efforts to verify NIN and SIM starting from 2011 without success.

    ”In February 2020, President Muhammadu Buhari approved the implementation of the policy and the revised version of the policy was also launched and unveiled by Mr. President on May 6, 2021.

    “As it stands today, the NIN and SIM policy registration is being implemented. In order to consolidate the implementation.

    “The Nigerian Communications Commission came up with a proposal that will enhance the implementation of the policy and bring many more benefits to it.”

    Pantami said the automated system would sanitise the database and ease the process of SIM replacement for Nigerians or legal residents.

  • UK returnee laments extortion, reacts after asked to remove lashes and nose ring at NIN office

    UK returnee laments extortion, reacts after asked to remove lashes and nose ring at NIN office

    A UK returnee has lamented extortion and the conditions asked to be met at the National Identity Number (NIN) office before she can be registered as a citizen of the country.

    The agitated lady lamented the exorbitant amount of money proposed to be paid at the NIN office where she needed to register to have access to get a sim card.

    According to the lady, she was asked to pay the sum of N15K while also being asked to remove her lashes and attached nose ring.

    She, however, bemoaned the deaf ear of the attendant who refused to consider the cost spent on getting the lashes done and how her nose ring is problematic to remove.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) had earlier reported that the Nigerian military arrested two suspected fake National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) officials in the Niger Republic, for allegedly enrolling non-Nigerians for NIN.

    This was disclosed by the Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Musa Danmadami, during a biweekly briefing at the Defence Headquarters.

    General Danmadami disclosed that the suspects had visited the Gagamari IDPs camp in the Niger Republic to register non-Nigerians in the IDPs camp, noting that items were recovered from the suspects including the National Identification Number (NIN) registration machine, printing machine, laminating machine, a computer tracking machine and a generator set among other items.

    He further added that the military had also arrested terrorists, logistics suppliers and rescued civilians during its operation.

    According to him, they have been handed over to the appropriate authority for further action.

    Established by the NIMC Act No. 23 of 2007, the NIMC has the mandate to establish, own, operate, maintain and manage the National Identity Database in Nigeria.

  • Nigeria Army arrests NIMC officials for registering foreigners in Niger Republic

    Nigeria Army arrests NIMC officials for registering foreigners in Niger Republic

     

    Two suspected fake National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) officials have been apprehended by the Nigerian Army in the West Africa nation of  Niger Republic for allegedly registering foreigners for National Identity Number (NIN).

    This was made known  by the Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Musa Danmadami, during the bi-weekly briefing at the Defence Headquarters.

    General Danmadami disclosed that the suspects had visited Gagamari IDPs camp in Niger Republic to register non-Nigerians in the IDPs camp, noting that items were recovered from the suspects including the National Identification Number (NIN) registration machine, printing machine, laminating machine, a computer tracking machine and a generator set among other items.

    The Army General  added that the military  also arrested terrorists, logistics suppliers and rescued civilians during its operation.

    According to him, they have been handed over to the appropriate authority for further action.

  • INVESTIGATION: Only 41 per cent of Nigerians have NIN as NIMC triples enrolment in four years

    INVESTIGATION: Only 41 per cent of Nigerians have NIN as NIMC triples enrolment in four years

    The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), says the ongoing National Identity Number (NIN) enrolment programme taking place in over 15, 000 centres across the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, has so far captured 89 million Nigerians in its database.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that this figure represents a 218 per cent increase from the 28 million persons it registered in 2018 and only 41 per cent of Nigeria’s estimated 215 million population.

    At a Press Conference to mark the 4th National Identity Day celebration in Abuja on Friday, the Director General of NIMC Aliyu Aziz, noted that the Commission has now hit an average of two million registration monthly through strategic partnerships with traditional instructions and awareness creation.

    As of today, scores of government programmes including workers’ registration under the Contributory Pension Scheme, application for and ownership of a driver’s licence, opening and operating a bank account, accessing health insurance, filing tax returns, registering for and writing the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB) exams, voting during the elections and making phone calls cannot be done without a valid NIN.

    “Today we have enrolled 89million people for the National Identify Number, NIN). When I became the DG we enrolled over 7million but you can see than we have enrolled additional 82 million We have been growing the data as every month we enroll two million people.

    “The 89 million are the mainstream people so there are still remaining the local people in village, Petty traders, market poeple and artisan in rural areas across the country who are yet to be enrolled,” Aziz said.

    The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Isa Pantami, who supervises NIMC, also stressed during the conference that “we can only get our digital economy right when we continue to improve and encourage our citizens to enrol in our national database”.

    It would be recalled that the Commission was established in 2007 but commenced enrolment of citizens for the National Identification Number (NIN) in 2012. Previous National ID Card programs in Nigeria were card-based but the current focus of the Commission is issuing number-based digital IDs which can be syncronised to a person’s records wherever they are.

    The NIN is an advanced number-based identity management system consisting of 11 unintelligent digits generated after a successful enrollment and it is unique as no two people have the same number. If a NIN holder dies that unique number is rested permanently.

    However, Nigerians have constantly lamented that the National e-ID Card component of the National Identity Management System (NIMS) which was launched in September of 2014, has been very slow.

    An enrollee Emmanuella Harrison, complained that she was yet to collect her ID Card more than five years after registration, even though she was given her NIN through a temporary slip that was issued to her upon successful registration.

    “They gave me a slip more than five years and up till now, I don’t have a card. Sometimes, I want to do something maybe at the bank and they will ask for ID card or passport and I don’t have them. It can be both embarrassing and frustrating,” she lamented.

    Another enrollee Victor Asemota, complained that his passport renewal process has been stalled as a delay of delays from NIMC.

    Asemota explained: “I’ve been trying to renew my passport since May but some days ago, my contact at the immigration office said that the process cannot continue for now because my NIN has not ‘dropped’ and that if I know somebody at NIMC of pay N5, 000, it can be fast-tracked”.

    It was gathered that the NIN portal has been down for weeks, making it difficult for the Nigerian Immigration Service to carry out verification of applicants, as part of processing requirements. The NIMC website is also currently down.

    The Commission has blamed the delay in issuance of ID cards on insufficient funding, stressing it can only meet its funds-based objectives when sufficient budgetary allocations are provided.

    In 2020, the federal government secured a World Bank credit facility of $430 million for the NIMC under the Nigeria Digital Identification for Development (DI4D). The project targets to enroll 148 million Nigerians, including 65 million women and girls, as well as 50 million children under the age of 16 by June 1, 2024.

    According to the NIMC Act, the registration and procurement of a National Identity Card are compulsory for all registrable persons in Nigeria. Registration is also free and has no age restrictions.