President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to ensure that every Nigerian is enrolled in the national identity database by the end of 2026.
This directive was revealed by NIMC Director General, Abisoye Coker-Odusote, during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Sunday, July 12, 2026.
Coker-Odusote disclosed that the agency has so far captured 137,371,080 Nigerians in its database.
She noted that while Nigeria’s population is estimated at around 200 million, other projections put the figure between 230 million and 250 million.
“The actual total will only be known once we have captured everyone,” she said, adding that comprehensive identity registration is critical for effective national planning and governance.
“Your identity is basically the foundation for governance and service delivery. How can you plan if you don’t know the total number of people you have?” Coker-Odusote asked.
She explained that the President has mandated the commission to take enrolment to the grassroots.
“The president has given us till the end of this year to make sure that we capture every single Nigerian,” she stated.
To achieve this target, the NIMC has partnered with relevant organisations under the World Bank’s ID4D (Identification for Development) project.
