The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Oyo State office, has begun the registration of the National Identity Number (NIN) at various wards in the state in order to reach more Nigerians.
The Coordinator of the Commission in the state, Mr Olanrewaju Olubanwo, told newsmen recently in Ibadan that the initiative aims to make NIN registration easier and more accessible for everyone, especially people in rural and underserved areas.
According to him, the initiative, known as the NIMC Ward Enrollment Project (WEP), is part of the government’s effort to expand NIN registration.
The NIMC boss stated that the exercise, which commenced on 16 February and is expected to last six weeks, will cover all 351 wards in the 33 local government areas in the state.
He said the commission’s target is to capture 95 per cent of the state residents within the six-week period.
Olubanwo further said that about 5,000 people have been registered across the 198 wards visited so far by front-end partners engaged by the commission.
The Oyo State coordinator explained that the commission collaborated with these front-end partners to carry out the enrolment on its behalf.
He expressed concerns over the low turnout of residents for the initiative, particularly in rural areas.
According to him, the commission is collaborating with the National Orientation Agency to sensitise the public on the initiative.
He also implored religious leaders, community heads, local government chairmen, and media organisations to assist in creating awareness about the programme.
Olubanwo, while underscoring the importance of the initiative, emphasised that NIN is required for various services such as UTME, SSCE/NECO registrations, banking, passport applications, and future welfare schemes.
The NIMC boss in Oyo further disclosed that not less than three million residents of the state have registered for NIN since the commencement of the programme in 2012.
He said that the appointment of the incumbent NIMC Director-General, Mrs Abisoye Coker-Odusote, had enhanced the productivity of the commission.
Olubanwo stated that under her leadership, NIN enrolment in the country has risen to about 130 million from 40 million registrants.
He said: “WEP is a nationwide effort by the commission to take NIN registration directly to ward-level communities across Nigeria, rather than only at large centralised centres.
“It is a strategic initiative by President Bola Tinubu, which mandated NIMC to enrol all Nigerians on the National Identity Database and ensure that those yet to be captured are registered.
“Our targets are primarily people outside urban centres, because we want to take the enrolment to them, even if they cannot afford transport.
“If they say distance prevents them from coming, we are reaching areas close to them so that they can easily register.”
“Our target is to capture two wards per LGA every week, which totals 66 wards per week from the 33 LGAs. So far, we have captured about 198 wards out of 351,” he said.
“They move from ward to ward, from community to community, to ensure that those who may not be able to visit the commission’s offices or designated centres in LGAs are not left out.”
