NCC Reveals What’ll Happen To People Without NIN After October 31 Deadline

The Nigerian Communications Fee (NCC) has reminded and urged telecoms customers to hyperlink their Nationwide Identification Numbers (NINs) with their Subscriber Identification Modules (SIMs) earlier than the expiration of the deadline of October 31, 2021 set by the Federal Authorities.

The Fee gave the admonition through the NCC Digital Signature (NDS) radio programme, which hosted the 2nd episode of Telecoms Client City Corridor on Radio (TCTHR) live on a radio station in Lagos on the weekend to debate advantages of NIN-SIM integration.

Within the studio through the TCTHR programme have been representatives of the NCC, the Nationwide Identification Administration Fee (NIMC) and officers of telecoms operators. The reside phone-in programme offered alternative for listeners to name and get clarifications on considerations and points round NIN-SIM integration train.

Talking through the reside programme, Director, Public Affairs, NCC, Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, suggested Nigerians to utilize the extension of the NIN-SIM integration train to October 31, 2021, to enrol with NIMC, get their NIN and hyperlink it to their SIMs. “Quickly, individuals with out NIN will likely be denied of crucial providers that play very important roles of their lives together with acquisition of driver’s license, worldwide passport,” he mentioned.

On the advantages of the NIN-SIM integration, Adinde mentioned the train will considerably improve nationwide safety as NIN is the first identification for Nigerians, stressing that according to Federal Authorities’s dedication to make sure that Nigeria deploys know-how to enhance service supply, the NIN-SIM database will improve residents’ entry to authorities providers.

In the identical vein, the Director, Client Affairs Bureau of NCC, Efosa Idehen, famous that the majority Nigerians are nonetheless utilizing SIMs with out distinctive identification, as they have been but to hyperlink their NINs to their SIMs, declaring that “these SIMs with out distinctive identification could possibly be used to commit crimes that stay untraceable.”

Whereas explaining that safety ought to be the duty of all residents and never be left within the palms of presidency alone, Idehen urged telecoms customers to make the most of the October 31, 2021 deadline to enrol with NIMC, get their NIN and hyperlink similar with their SIM to keep away from denial of important providers in future.

Additionally talking on the programme, Regional Director, NIMC in Lagos, Funmi Opesanwo, famous that submission of NIN to a cellular community supplier helps in offering a method of verifying a person’s identification and safeguarding each identification and cellular line.

She defined that NIN will develop into the primary layer of verifying the whole lot a couple of citizen, stating that different related database in different sectors of the financial system are being built-in into the NIMC database for correct harmonisation
“For example, Financial institution Verification Quantity (BVN) is being harmonised with NIMC database. Subsequently, BVN holders have mechanically been allotted NIN and we advise BVN holders to dial *346# with the cellular quantity linked to BVN to substantiate their integration. Nonetheless, NINs generated through BVN should be verified and validated by NIMC via correct registration and biometrics seize at an enrollment heart,” she mentioned.

Representatives of telecoms corporations together with Globacom, MTN, Airtel and 9mobile, who attended the programme additionally answered collection of questions from the customers on the phone-in programme.

TCTHR is a shopper outreach programme of the NCC beforehand held in semi-urban areas however now modified to be radio-based, so as to attain each telecom shopper and as a part of the Fee’s response to the efforts of the Federal Authorities to comprise the unfold of COVID-19 pandemic.

The primary episode of the programme, geared toward empowering customers via data sharing, training and safety initiatives, held in Kano in August, 2021 on NCC Digital Signature.