Again, Nigerian govt extends NIN-SIM linkage by two months

The Federal Government has extended the National Identification Number (NIN) and Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) registration exercise currently ongoing across the country.

The extension is by another eight weeks (two months) with the new deadline set for April 6, 2021.

The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Pantami, made the announcement in a statement after a meeting of the Ministerial Taskforce on NIN-SIM Registration which held in Abuja on Monday.

The statement which was signed by the Director of Public Affairs of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Ike Adinde and Head of Corporate Communications of the Nigeria Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Kayode Adegoke, noted that “the ongoing National Identification Number (NIN) and Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) integration exercise has been extended by 8 weeks, with a new deadline of April 6, 2021.”

Pantami stated that the extension is to give Nigerians and legal residents more time to integrate their NIN with their SIM.

The meeting which was chaired by the Minister, was attended by key stakeholders including the EVC/CEO of NCC, DG/CEO of the 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 at the meeting included the MD/CEOs of MTN, Airtel, 9Mobile, Globacom, Ntel, Spectranet and SMILE Communications.

Read also: NIMC: 2.3m persons enrolled in Kano

Continuing, the Minister said:

“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.

“This is in line with the policy of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to enhance security and make the process of obtaining NINs easier for Nigerians.”

Giving a breakdown on the registration exercise, Pantami said a total of 56.18 million NINs have been collected by the mobile network operators with each NIN usually tied to an average of three to four SIMs.

“This infers that the current figure accounts for a significant portion of the existing SIMs.

“The number of NINs collected represents a significant increase when compared with the 47.8 million reported by the Technical Committee on January 18, 2021,” the statement added.

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 enroll for their NIN and link with their SIMs.

The Minister also applauded all Nigerians and persons of other nationalities for their understanding, cooperation and for enthusiastically participating in the exercise.

“The minister implores applicants to follow the safety guidelines at all the NIN enrolment centers and ensure compliance with the booking system in place,” the statement said.

Ripples Nigeria reported that based on the outcry by millions of Nigerians, the federal government had initially extended the deadline of the for registration for the NIN by six weeks from December 30, 2020 to February 9, 2021.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now