Nigerian Government Approves Sale, Registration Of New SIM Cards With Mandatory NIN

The Nigerian Government has approved the activation of new SIM card registration with mandatory National Identification Number (NIN) linking, starting from April 19, 2021.

Femi Adeluyi, the Technical Assistant (Information Technology) to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, made the announcement on Thursday.

He said the issuance of new SIMs and other suspended activities will resume on the same date, “as long as verification is done and the guidelines are fully adhered to.”

“Federal government approves the activation of new SIM registration with mandatory NIN in line with the Revised National Digital Identity Policy for SIM Card Registration

“An earlier Policy was approved on the 4th of February 2020, while the Revised Policy was developed in early March 2021. The final amendments to the revised Policy based on the directives of Mr President to make the use of NIN mandatory for all SIM registration were completed yesterday, 14th of April, 2021.

“The implementation of the Policy will commence on Monday, 19th of April 2021. The issuance of New SIMs and other suspended activities will resume on the same date, as long as verification is done and the guidelines are fully adhered to.

“The Minister has also instructed NCC and NIMC to ensure that the provisions of the Policy are strictly followed by all operators and subscribers.”

Pantami commended Nigerians for their patience and compliance with the Federal Government’s directive on the NIN-SIM registration exercise.

KanyiDaily recalls that in December 2020, the federal government suspended the sale and activation of new sim cards as it embarked on an audit of the subscriber registration database.