About 59.8 million Nigerians have been issued National Identity Numbers (NIN), according to a joint statement from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC).
The agencies also stated that each of the NIN have been linked to about three to four SIM cards, in a statement issued on Sunday.
Both also announced the extension of the deadline for NIN-SIM data verification to October 31, being the sixth time since December, 2020.
According to them, the extension was granted following a request by stakeholders to accommodate registration in hard-to-reach remote areas, foreign and diplomatic missions and Nigerians in the diaspora.
The statement signed by NCC Director of Public Affairs, Ikechukwu Adinde, and NIMC Head of Media, Kayode Adegoke, explained that the extension would address low enrolment in schools and hospitals as evidenced by enrolment statistics.
As of Saturday, it said there were over 5,500 enrolment systems within and outside the country to enhance enrolment.
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The statement quoted the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, as commending the Kano State Government and other states that have made NIN a key requirement for school enrolment and access to other important services.
“The federal government is also excited at the news that the use of NIN in the process of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) exam significantly reduced the challenge of exam malpractice.”
The Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Dambatta, and the Director General of that NIMC, Engr. Aliyu Azeez, urged citizens and legal residents to make sure they use the opportunity to complete the process of enrolment and verification before the October 31 deadline.
