Buhari sets up committee to create digital ID for Nigerians

President Muhammed Buhari has sets up committee to create digital identity (ID) for all Nigerians, to integrate data like Bank Verification Number (BVN), Driver’s License, passports and National Identity Management Number.

The committee will be chaired by Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha.

Dr. Joe Abah, a member of the committee, confirmed the development on his Twitter handle, adding that the committee would seek to integrate other data held by the government including BVN, Driver’s License, passports and the National Identity Management Number.

The government announced last month its push for the creation of a digital identity for development ecosystem. The aim of the project is to facilitate the development and implementation of a digital identity in Nigeria.

Boss Mustapha stated that the project, which was earlier approved by the FEC in 2018, is a compounding effort of collective works by government institutions and stakeholders since 2015, as Nigeria seeks to find a cost effective way to digital identity management.

Mustapha revealed that the government merged a “three tier institutional arrangement” made up of a strategic unit, a steering committee, and a unit for implementation in the National Identity management Commission (NIMC), which will provide coordination and governance, working with stakeholders to implement a digital identification strategy.

The Digital identification drive will facilitate identity management in Nigeria and provide the government with data on Nigerians which would have been needed during the drive for palliatives for poor Nigerians during the pandemic and other areas of governance regarding data.