By Adeyemi Adepetun
The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has said it registered three million National Identification Numbers (NINs) between December 2020 and January 2021.
Director-General of NIMC, Aliyu Aziz, disclosed this at the weekend in an online interview with journalists.
He said: “Presently, we have enrolled and successfully generated 46 million NINs. In late December 2020, we reported 43 million NINs. So, we have added three million between December 2020 and January 2021.
“The commission is still working to populate the database and has licensed over 203 agents for Federal Government’s intervention enrolment drive.”
He said NIMC started enrolment and issuance of NIN since 2012 and that registration centres had been active and open to provide identity services to members of the public.
Aziz, however, lamented that it was unfortunate that a large number of Nigerians and legal residents did not take advantage of those years to enroll for their NINs.
“Based on this, it is unfair to say that NIMC is slow in enrolling Nigerians. What you are witnessing is a sudden surge of applicants showing up for enrolment because of the SIM-NIN linkage deadline. As with any complex national project targeted at all Nigerians, there would be challenges, constraints and unforeseen issues.
“The Federal Government is aware of the challenges and has been doing its best to resolve them, especially in the area of power supply, broadband connectivity, awareness and sensitisation, among others,” he added.
He said the commission was also collaborating with the private and public sectors to leverage their capacities and facilities for a cost-effective, faster and better-coordinated implementation of identity services delivery.
MEANWHILE, MTN has revealed that it was increasing capacity to provide enrolment services in all its customer interaction touchpoints across the country, including remote locations.
It noted that a reliable and sustainable National Identity Management system was a critical enabler that would deliver multiple benefits to the telecoms industry and the entire country, adding that it would also aid national economic planning and enhance security, governance and service delivery at all levels.
In a statement issued by its Acting Public Relations Manager, Corporate Affairs, Lakinbofa Goodluck, it noted that it had deployed dynamic onsite appointment booking system to limit crowds at its service centres and plans to launch an online version shortly at locations where enrolment services have been introduced, alongside its standard COVID-19 safety protocols.
Also, Chief Customer Relations Officer for MTN Nigeria, Ugonwa Nwoye, sought Nigerians’ continued patience and understanding, saying the company would continue to improve its capacity.
“We are working closely with the NIMC and the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy to expand the number of enrolment centres and ensure that they provide access points for as many Nigerians as possible,” he said.
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