The Federal Government has again extended the deadline for the linkage between the National Identification Number (NIN) and the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) to the 31st of March, 2022.

“Following the request by stakeholders, including citizens, legal residents and Nigerians in the diaspora, the Federal Government has extended the deadline of the exercise to the 31st of March, 2022.  This extension would enable the Federal Government to consolidate the gains of the process and accelerate the enrolment of Nigerians in key areas like the remote areas, diaspora, schools, hospitals, worship centres, and the registration of legal residents,” the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Pantami, said in a statement.

The exercise was scheduled to end on Friday, December 31, 2021, after several extensions since the plan commenced.

The minister explained that the country had recorded significant growth in the number of NIN enrolments amidst a stepped-up drive to enlighten Nigerians as well as legal residents across the country.

According to the statement, the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), as of December 30, 2021, had issued over 71million NINs while more than14,000 enrolment centres had been set up across the country.

It further disclosed that the NIMC had also established enrolment centres in at least 31 countries to address the needs of Nigerians in the Diaspora. 

The growth of unique NINs to more than 71 million within such a relatively short period, with about three to four SIMs linked to a NIN, reflects the concerted effort of the Federal Government, the Nigerian populace and legal residents and this is truly commendable, the statement said.