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| Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami |
The Federal Government
has extended the deadline for the linking of National Identification Number
(NIN) with the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) by 8 weeks. The new deadline for
the completion of the exercise is April 6, 2021.
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa
Ali Ibrahim (Pantami) disclosed this during the meeting of the Ministerial
Taskforce on NIN-SIM registration on the 1st of February, 2021.
The minister said the extension became necessary to give
Nigerians and legal residents more time to integrate their NIN with the SIM.
A joint press statement signed by Dr Ikechukwu Adinde, Director,
Public Affairs of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and Kayode
Adegoke, Head Corporate Communications of the Nigeria Identity Management
Commission (NIMC) disclosed that the meeting was attended by key stakeholders,
including the EVC/CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), DG/CEO
of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), DG/CEO of the National
Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the Chairman of the
Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON).
Others include the MD/CEOs of MTN,
Airtel, 9Mobile, Ntel, Spectranet and SMILE, as well as the COO of Globacom.
It was reported at the meeting that the mobile network
operators had collected a total of 56.18 million NINs. Each NIN is usually tied
to an average of 3 to 4 SIMs and this infers that the current figure accounts
for a significant portion of the existing SIMs.
This number of NINs collected represents a significant
increase when compared with the 47.8 million reported by the Technical
Committee on January 18, 2021.
Furthermore, over 1060 registration centres for NIN have
been activated and made operational by NIMC across the country, while Mobile
Network Operators (MNOs) have opened hundreds of centres and are rapidly
deploying resources to open thousands of other NIN enrolment centres across
states of the country.
Pantami reiterated the need for Nigerians and legal
residents who are yet to register for the NIN to be diligent and take advantage
of the extension to enrol for their NIN and link it with their SIMs.
It would be recalled that the 4th of February, 2020 was the
initial date of the commencement of the National NIN-SIM Registration Policy.
Pantami implored applicants to follow the safety guidelines
at all the NIN enrolment centres and ensure compliance with the booking system
in place.
“This protocol is in line with the Executive Order on
COVID-19 2020 signed by President Muhammadu Buhari on the 27th of January 2021,
in keeping with the provisions of the Quarantine Act 2004,” the statement
further disclosed.
It is noteworthy that Sections 27 and 29 of the National
Identity Management Commission Act 2007 provides for the mandatory use of
National Identity Number for transactions, including application and issuance
of a passport, the opening of personal bank accounts, purchase of insurance
policies, voter registration, and obtaining credit, among others.
