The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Director General, Aliyu Aziz, has disclosed that the Commission has thus far enrolled 89 million people in the current National Identity Number (NIN) registration.
At a press conference held in Abuja to commemorate the 4th National Identity Day celebration, which is observed on September 16 each year, Aliyu said this.
Despite the recent accomplishments, according to Aliyu, the Commission is extending the enrollment effort to all corners of the nation by working with conventional institutions.
As of right now, 89 million people have signed up for the National Identify Number (NIN). We had over 7 million enrollees when I took over as DG, but as you can see, we now have 82 million more. As we enroll 2 million new students each month, the data has been expanding.
He emphasized that there are still unregistered locals in villages, little traders, market vendors, and artisans in remote parts of the country. “The 89 million are the mainstream population,” he said.
To do this, according to the NIMC Chief, “we are cooperating with the traditional instructions and leaders to generate awareness on NIN enrolment at the grassroots level because NIN is a right of everyone.
“You know that identity is a tool for empowerment, and increasing usage of digital identity may help bring development and coordination for improved government service delivery,” added Aziz.
In accordance with the legislation, he added, changes to names and dates of birth shouldn’t take more than 48 hours to take effect.
“With our technology, changing a person’s name and birthdate within the legal (5-year) limits shouldn’t take more than 48 hours. We have to speak with additional relevant parties before we make the update, which is why some take longer.
“However, there are rare instances where it is obvious that there was a mistake during admission, such as when the child is three years younger than the mother. Therefore, the NIMC Boss underscored, “We encourage anyone coming for enrollment who is illiterate to come with one literate person.