NIN-SIM integration: FG extends deadline to April 6

Etim Effiong

The Federal Government has extended the deadline for the ongoing National Identification Number and Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) linkage.

A statement signed and made available on Tuesday by the Director of Public Affairs, NCC, Dr Ike Adinde and Head of Corporate Communications, NIMC, Kayode Adegoke, noted that the decision was reached during a meeting of Ministerial Taskforce on NIN-SIM registration, which was convened by the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami.

The statement added that the objective of the extension is to give Nigerians and legal residents time to link their NIN with the SIM.

The key stakeholders that attended the February 1 meeting were 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 were the MD/CEOs of MTN, Airtel, 9Mobile, Ntel, Spectranet and SMILE, as well as the COO of Globacom.

It was gathered that a total of 56.18 million NINs have been collected by the mobile network operators.

Each NIN is usually tied to an average of 3 to 4 SIMs, which implies that the current figure accounts for a significant portion of the existing SIMs.

It was learnt that those number of NINs collected represents a significant increase when compared with the 47.8 million reported by the Technical Committee on January 18, 2021.

It was gathered that 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,” the statement noted.

The CEOs of the Telcos and the Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Organisation of Nigeria, praised the Pantami for his leadership and commitment to the development of the sector.

Pantami, however, reiterated the need for Nigerians and legal residents who have yet to register for the NIN to be diligent and take advantage of the extension to enrol for their NIN and link 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.

The Federal Government of Nigeria applauds all Nigerians and persons of other nationalities for their understanding, cooperation and for enthusiastically participating in the exercise.

The minister also commended the efforts of NIMC, NCC, MNOs and all other relevant government and private sector organisations for their unflinching support towards the success of the exercise.