It is no longer news that every Nigerian and other nationals resident in Nigeria has to enroll for the National Identification Number (NIN) if they want to continue using their SIM cards.
This follows the directive of the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) mandating telecommunication operators to block SIM cards that are not linked with the NIN latest by February. In a bid to get the NIN and link it with their SIM cards, Nigerians have been trooping to the offices of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), the agency in charge of the registration.
This recently led to the closure of the NIMC office in Lagos as people failed to abide by the COVID-19 protocols.
Easy way to enrol for NIN Do you want to enrol for the NIN without going through unnecessary stress and exposing yourself to the risk of COVID-19 infection?
The best way to ensure this is to download the NIN enrolment form on the portal of NIMC. After downloading the form, you will print it out and fill in the appropriate information and take it to any of the enrolment centres closest to you. This will significantly reduce the time you will spend at the registration centre as you will only need to do the biometric capture instead of filling out the form again. To download the enrolment form, click here and here. To also make the process easier, NIMC has adopted a booking system. With effect from Wednesday, December 30, NIN applicants will be given slots and once the daily slots have been exhausted, others will be given another date to avoid crowding.
Meanwhile, Isa Pantami, the minister of communications and digital economy, has approved the development and release of an improved NIN slip and a mobile application that would help in securing it. The technical assistant, information technology to the ministry, Femi Adeluyi, made this known in a statement issued on the night of Thursday, December 31, 2020, in Abuja. Adeluyi said the development was part of the federal government’s policy to improve the process of obtaining NIN and linking it to SIM cards and also aligning with the national digital economy policy for a digital Nigeria.
