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FG Sets December 31 Deadline For NIM/SIM Linkage, Enrol 66 Million NIN

Ololade Omosan-Agie

the Federal Government has extended the deadline for linking the National Identity Number (NIN) to customers Subscriber Identity Module (SIM), to the end of 2021.

The deadline was initially announced in July was October 31, 2021.

The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Pantami gave the approval for the extension of the exercise to December 31.

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) made the disclosure in a notice

The extension was approved based on appeals by Mobile Network Operators and other industry stakeholders  to avoid widening the digital divide.

NCC said, “The administration of His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, has graciously approved the extension to accommodate the yearnings of the populace and make it easier for its citizens within and outside the country, and legal residents to obtain the NIN and link it with their SIM. The Federal Government will ensure that all innocent, law abiding citizens and residents will not lose access to their phone lines as long as they obtain and link their NIN.

“The extension would also provide the enabling environment for the registration of Nigerians in remote areas, diaspora, schools, hospitals, worship centres, as well as foreigners, diplomatic missions, those in other areas that were hitherto unreachable, and increase enrolments in countries with a significant number of Nigerians.”

The NCC further revealed that over 66 million unique NIN have been issued.

The agency revealed that a significant part of the Nigerian population are yet to be registered into the National Identity Database (NIDB).

NCC noted that as of October 30, 2021, it has established over 9,500 enrolment systems and over 8,000 NIN enrolment centres within and outside the country.

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