The percentage of diasporan Nigerians with National Identification Numbers (NINs) rose to 25.17 percent in May 2023, according to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC).
Since the launch of its diaspora enrolment exercise in 2019, NIMC has registered 427,962 diasporan Nigerians News About Nigeria reports.
The World Bank’s “The World Development Report 2023: Migrants, refugees, and Societies” stated that there were at least 1.7 million Nigerians living in the diaspora. It further revealed that Nigeria is home to almost 1.3 million immigrants and is the origin of 1.7 million emigrants.
In its May 27, 2023 update, NIMC announced that the number of diasporan Nigerians in its database reached 427,962, with 178,799 females and 249,163 males.
The primary objective of NIMC’s service is to include Nigerians living outside the country in the National Identity Database, ensuring they benefit from having NINs. Without NINs, diasporan Nigerians are unable to renew their passports, and enrolment is not free of charge.
NIMC stated, “Nigerians abroad also have the option to enroll for free whenever they travel back to Nigeria, provided they have valid passports. However, if their passports have expired, they must obtain their NINs as a prerequisite for passport renewal or to acquire new passports.”
The service is available in 77 foreign countries, as listed on NIMC’s website. Among these countries, 40 are in Africa, nine are in Asia/Middle East, 23 are in Europe/Oceania, and five are in the Americas.
Furthermore, NIMC has successfully captured over 100 million Nigerians in its database. As of May 27, 2023, the enrolment figures stand at over 100 million unique records, with the highest cumulative enrolment figure of over 10.9 million recorded in Lagos State.
Currently, 43.28 million females and 56.75 million males possess NINs. The top five states with the highest NIN enrolments are Lagos with 10.92 million, Kano with 8.84 million, Kaduna with 6.19 million, Ogun with 4.19 million, and Oyo with 3.89 million.
