Nigerians in Diaspora with NINs rise by 563%

The number of Nigerians in Diaspora with National Identification Numbers has risen by 563.57 per cent from 55,181 as of February 2022 to 366,164 as of February 2023, according to the National Identity Management Commission.

This is as the total number of individuals with NIN rose by 28.05 per cent from 75.36 million as of February 2022 to 96.5 million as of February 2023.

According to NIMC, the total number of persons with NIN hit 96.5 million as of February 22, 2023, a 28.05 per cent increase from the 75.36 million that was recorded as of February 21, 2022.

Unlike how NIN registrations in Nigeria are broken down into states, NIMC did not give a breakdown of the countries the Diaspora Nigerians are registered in.

However, in 2020, a year after launching the diaspora enrollment exercise, the Director-General of NIMC, Aliyu Aziz, disclosed that enrolment was available for Nigerians in 15 countries.

Commenting on the growth of diaspora registration at the time, Aziz said, “Diaspora enrolment was greatly received by the Nigerians in other countries, and it has been going well since the launch.

“Enrolment is happening in over 15 countries across the world, with more countries to come on board in the near future.”

In Nigeria, Lagos (10.64 million) has the highest number of individuals with NINs. This is followed by Kano (8.42 million), Kaduna (5.78 million), Ogun (4.05 million), and Oyo (3.79 million).

Bayelsa (611,229) has the least number of individuals with NIN. This is followed by Ebonyi (774,263), Ekiti (990,463), Cross-River (1.11 million), and Taraba (1.42 million).

Through NIN, the government hopes to link an individual’s records — demographic data, fingerprints, head-to-shoulder facial picture, other biometric data, and digital signature — in a national identity database to enable easy confirmation and verification of identity.

In 2022, telecommunication consumers without NINs linked to their SIMs were barred from making calls on their lines. NIN is a requirement for many registrations in the country.

According to the Federal Government, every Nigerian is expected to get a NIN.