As of February 28, 2025, the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has successfully enrolled 117 million Nigerians for the National Identity Number (NIN), marking a significant milestone in the country’s push toward digital identification. According to the latest data from the NIMC dashboard, a large portion of these registrants are spread across the country, with Lagos and Kano leading in the number of enrollments.
The NIMC figures show that over 66 million males (56.5%) have registered for the NIN, while 51 million females (43.5%) have completed the process. The report highlights that the national enrollment effort has seen an impressive uptake across both northern and southern Nigeria, with some states experiencing higher registration rates than others.
Lagos State holds the top spot with the highest cumulative number of registrations, boasting over 12.6 million Nigerians enrolled. This reflects the state’s dense population and its status as the commercial capital of Nigeria. The NIMC report indicated that Lagos alone contributes a significant portion of the national enrollment figures, with 6,870,915 male registrants and 5,741,419 female registrants.
Following Lagos, Kano State has recorded 10.2 million registrations. This state, which is the largest in the northern region, has a balanced gender distribution with 5,924,126 males and 4,321,929 females. These two states stand as leaders in the NIN registration drive, demonstrating a substantial commitment to ensuring citizens are captured in the national identification system.
Beyond Lagos and Kano, other states with high registration numbers include Kaduna, Ogun, and Oyo. Kaduna, with a population of over 6.9 million registered individuals, has seen a relatively even split between males and females, with 3,832,083 males and 3,113,735 females completing the registration. Ogun State follows with 4.9 million registrants, and Oyo State comes next with just under 4.5 million registrations.
These numbers reflect the broader geographical spread of registration across Nigeria, with each state working to ensure that as many of their residents as possible have access to the NIN, a key step toward accessing government services, banking, and other essential services.
While many states in the north and south-west have seen high registration rates, some regions continue to lag in the national enrollment drive. States such as Bayelsa, Ebonyi, and Ekiti have recorded some of the lowest figures.
Bayelsa, for example, has only enrolled 758,111 individuals, a far cry from the numbers in Lagos and Kano. Similarly, Ebonyi has seen just under a million registrations, with 990,775 total enrollments. Ekiti, in the south-west, follows with a total of 1,143,102 registrants.
These lower numbers can be attributed to a variety of factors, including poor access to registration centers, infrastructural challenges, and a lower awareness of the importance of the NIN in these areas. These states are likely to face ongoing challenges in increasing their registration numbers, especially with the deadline for NIN enrollment drawing nearer.
Several other states also recorded low enrollment numbers in the most recent data. Cross River, with 1.4 million registrants, and Taraba, with 1.7 million, are examples of states where the enrollment numbers are significantly lower compared to the more populous regions. In total, states like Yobe, Kogi, Enugu, Kwara, and Imo fall behind in terms of registration totals, each hovering between 1.5 million to 2 million individuals enrolled.
While these states are making efforts to improve enrollment, challenges such as poor infrastructure, security concerns, and public awareness continue to hinder the process. The NIMC and state governments are expected to step up their efforts in these areas to ensure every eligible Nigerian is captured in the national database.
In response to security concerns, especially in the northern parts of the country, the NIMC has made efforts to increase the number of registration centers, including mobile registration units, to ensure Nigerians, even in the remotest parts of the country, have access to the NIN registration process.
The challenge, however, remains in some volatile areas where insurgency and banditry have made travel and access to services more difficult. This has further complicated the enrollment process in certain regions of the north and parts of the south-east.
The National Identity Number is a crucial step for Nigerians to access a range of government services, including social benefits, healthcare, banking, and voting in future elections. The NIN is also linked to the issuance of international passports and other forms of identification necessary for legal and commercial transactions.
For many Nigerians, the NIN represents not just a tool for identification but also an essential part of the government’s broader efforts to digitize records and modernize its services. The data collected through the NIN process will also play a key role in future policymaking, ensuring more accurate demographic data and better-targeted interventions by the government.
As the deadline for full NIN enrollment approaches, there are calls for an even stronger push in the states with lower numbers to ensure that every Nigerian is accounted for. While some areas have already seen impressive numbers, there is still much work to be done to ensure that the full 200 million-plus Nigerian population is registered.
The NIMC, along with state governments, will need to redouble their efforts, especially in the underserved regions, to meet the national goal of universal NIN registration. Ensuring access to registration centers, increasing public awareness, and addressing infrastructural issues are some of the key challenges that need to be tackled in the coming months.
As Nigeria moves forward with its goal of full digital identification, the successful enrollment of 117 million Nigerians represents an important step in the right direction.
