E-Business
FG Unveils ECOWAS Biometric ID Card
The Federal Government on Friday intensified its regional security posture and modernised its identity management architecture with the official rollout of the ECOWAS National Biometric Identity Card ENBIC, marking a decisive push against transborder crimes, irregular migration and document fraud across West Africa.
The launch makes Nigeria the seventh ECOWAS country to operationalise the card, a project conceived by the regional bloc 11 years ago but now revived under what officials described as President Bola Tinubu’s “renewed leadership and insistence on results.”
Speaking at the ceremony, Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said the ENBIC rollout heralds “a powerful new beginning” for secure mobility and regional integration, noting that the delay of more than a decade was uncharacteristic of Nigeria’s capacity.
He said, “It is unlike the Nigerian standard. That is very unsual, but the good news is that President Tinubu came in, insisted on delivery, and today the promise has become a reality. This is leadership in action, not about what we will do but what we have done.”
Tunji-Ojo described the biometric card as the foundation of a new security and identity ecosystem that will transform intelligence gathering and border control.
“You cannot protect who you do not know. Identification is the bedrock of security,” he said, explaining that the card will help tackle irregular migration, integrate with global public key directories like ICAO, and relieve pressure on Nigeria’s passport system by providing ECOWAS-bound travellers with a simpler alternative.
“If you are not travelling outside ECOWAS, you don’t need a passport. This card takes you anywhere within the region,” he said.
He also linked the initiative to wider reforms championed by President Tinubu, including the 2024 deployment of the UN-mandated Advanced Passenger Information System (APIS), which allows authorities to know travellers before they arrive.
“This government inherited problems but refused to give excuses. It has straightened situations others postponed,” he said.
The minister added that the Immigration Service will next unveil the Single Travel Emergency Passport STEP in January to help stranded Nigerians return home seamlessly.
With the formal introduction of the ECOWAS National Biometric Identity Card, the minister said Nigeria is not only strengthening its borders but also reasserting its leadership in a region seeking deeper unity, safer mobility and a digital future built on shared prosperity.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, represented by Permanent Secretary Mohammed Sanusi Danjuma, situated the rollout within Nigeria’s long-standing leadership in regional integration.
He recalled that the blueprint for the biometric system was first agreed at an ECOWAS summit hosted by Nigeria in 2014, adding that Friday’s launch “stands as a monument to shared political will” and proof of what West Africa can achieve when nations place collective security above individual interests.
He said the card represents far more than a digital credential. “Today we hold in our hands a simple card, but in our hearts we hold a profound hope,” he said, describing it as a symbol of dignity for migrant women, empowerment for cross-border traders, and a promise of a West Africa where borders become “bridges to opportunity rather than barriers to progress.”
Akume urged member states to accelerate nationwide rollouts and to harmonise databases to create an interoperable identity architecture across the sub-region.
He also called on the private sector, especially fintechs, to build innovative services around the platform to deepen inclusion and drive digital transformation.
In her remarks, Comptroller-General of Immigration, Kemi Nandap, said the milestone is both technical and historic. “This is a strategic leap forward in modernising our identity and travel management systems,” she said, praising President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and commending the Interior Minister’s “dynamic guidance” in bringing the project to completion.
She explained that the ENBIC replaces the paper-based ECOWAS travel certificate and is built on advanced biometric and cryptographic technology compliant with ICAO and ECOWAS standards.
“Its biometric core, anchored on high-quality facial and fingerprint data, establishes a secure link between the holder and the credential. It will enhance verification, reduce document fraud, and disrupt transborder criminal networks,” she said.
Nandap said the socioeconomic benefits are equally significant, as the card empowers small-scale traders, improves labour mobility, boosts tourism, speeds up border processing and strengthens cooperation across the region.
“It is a foundational instrument for a more secure, integrated and prosperous West Africa,” she said.
President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Touray, praised Nigeria for once again providing leadership at a moment when the region faces grave security challenges.
“In this world crisis, the leadership of Nigeria inspires all the citizens of West Africa,” he said through a representative.
He disclosed that ECOWAS forces were currently in Guinea-Bissau, preventing conflict and saluted Nigeria’s role in regional peace and development.
He projected that by the year 2100, Nigeria would be among the world’s top five economies, adding that “this initiative is only the beginning” of a region-wide biometric identity ecosystem.
Chief of Mission of the International Organization for Migration IOM, Dimanche Sharon, described the ENBIC as “a very strategic step towards secure mobility,” saying it would greatly enhance identity verification and migration governance across the sub-region.
The rollout was witnessed by paramilitary service chiefs, the Director General of the Department of State Services, ECOWAS commissioners, diplomatic corps members, and technology partners who collaborated on the project.
Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has directed all Data Controllers and Data Processors of Major Importance (DCPMIs), yet to register with the commission to do so immediately.
This followed a Federal High Court judgment affirming NDPC statutory powers to designate and register such entities.
DCPMIs are entities operating in Nigeria that handle sensitive personal data or large volumes of information, requiring mandatory registration with the NDPC under the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA).
In a statement issued on Tuesday by Babatunde Bamigboye, head of Legal, Enforcement and Regulations at the NDPC, described the judgment as a major milestone for data accountability and regulatory oversight in Nigeria.
The commission said the ruling arose from a suit filed by Emmanuel Harunna against the NDPC in Emmanuel Harunna v. NDPC (FHC/L/CS/1116/2024), in which the applicant sought a declaration that Point of Sale agents were not Data Controllers or Processors of Major Importance under the Nigeria Data Protection Act and requested a perpetual injunction restraining the commission from registering them.
According to the statement, Justice F.N. Ogazi examined the commission’s Guidance Notice on Registration alongside Sections 5(d), 6(c), 44, 45 and 65 of the Nigeria Data Protection Act before concluding that the commission acted within its statutory powers in designating entities under the Major Data Processing – Ordinary High Level category as Data Controllers and Processors of Major Importance.
Quoting the judgment, the statement read, “The Nigeria Data Protection Act was enacted to promote accountability, transparency and responsible data governance. Registration enables the Respondent to identify entities engaged in significant data processing activities, monitor compliance.”
It added that the court held that, “Far from undermining the constitutional right to privacy, the registration framework is one of the statutory mechanisms designed to safeguard that very right by subjecting data controllers and data processors to effective regulatory oversight.”
The statement further quoted the court as saying, “Looking at the recitals of the Guidance Notice, there is every indication that the Guidance Notice is also aimed at protecting the privacy and security of data subjects, thus bringing the registration requirement of the Guidance Notice within the protective shield of Section 45 of the 1999 Constitution.”
According to the commission, the court also held that, “Remarkably, Section 63 of the Data Protection Act provides that the provisions of the Act shall prevail over any other law inconsistent with its provisions on matters relating to the processing of personal data.”
Reacting to the judgment, the commission described the decision as a significant boost to Nigeria’s data protection regime.
“The Commission appreciates the ground-breaking efforts of the court towards the advancement of the jurisprudence relating to data accountability in Nigeria, as eloquently demonstrated in this case,” the statement read.
Following the ruling, Vincent Olatunji, national commissioner and chief executive officer, had directed every Data Controller and Processor of Major Importance that had yet to comply with the registration requirement to register without delay.
The commission warned that entities failing to comply with the registration requirement could face legal consequences.
“Failure to register creates serious legal liabilities under the law, while compliance with registration requirements builds public trust and safeguards the fundamental rights and freedoms of data subjects in Nigeria,” the statement added.
The University of Nigeria (UNN) is set to partner with The Roxettes Group to establish a research and innovation centre focused on artificial intelligence (AI), smart and green mobility, and digital technologies, in a move aimed at strengthening research, entrepreneurship and technology-driven industrial development.
Chairman of The Roxettes Group, Arc. Dr. Kaycee Orji-Kelechi, announced the proposed partnership while delivering his acceptance speech after receiving an Honorary Doctor of Business Administration (Honoris Causa) during the university’s convocation ceremony.
The proposed facility, to be known as the Dr. Kaycee Orji Centre for Artificial Intelligence, Smart/Green Mobility and Digital Innovation, is expected to provide a platform for research, innovation and collaboration between academia and industry, with a focus on developing commercially viable solutions to local and continental challenges.
Orji-Kelechi said the initiative was conceived as a long-term investment in human capital and technological advancement rather than simply another physical infrastructure project.
He said the vision was to position the University of Nigeria among Africa’s leading institutions in artificial intelligence, smart mobility and digital innovation through research, entrepreneurship and technology development.
According to him, the centre will house five specialised laboratories covering artificial intelligence and machine learning, smart and green mobility, robotics and the Internet of Things (IoT), digital finance and financial technology, as well as cloud computing and advanced data centre technologies.
He also announced plans for the proposed Kaycee Orji Founders Innovation Challenge, an annual programme intended to identify, mentor and support innovative ideas from students, researchers and academic staff with the potential to become scalable businesses.
“Every student of this University should know that a great idea conceived in a classroom should have a pathway to becoming a patent, a startup, a global enterprise, and a solution that transforms society,” he said.
Orji-Kelechi disclosed that preliminary conceptual work on the project had commenced, with architectural and engineering designs being prepared by K.KH Contractors Ltd., a subsidiary of The Roxettes Group.
He added that discussions with the university would begin on identifying a suitable site for the project, while a comprehensive proposal containing architectural drawings, engineering designs and an implementation framework would be submitted after completion of the design phase.
Reflecting on his career, Orji-Kelechi said Africa must move beyond consuming innovation to creating it through investment in manufacturing, technology and entrepreneurship.
“We have pursued one simple vision: that Nigeria and Africa must move from consumption to production; from importing innovation to creating it; and from waiting for opportunities to building them,” he said.
He urged graduating students to see their education as a foundation for solving societal challenges through innovation, leadership and enterprise, adding that he remained committed to promoting industrial development, youth empowerment and sustainable economic growth.
The proposed collaboration forms part of broader efforts to strengthen university-industry partnerships, which are increasingly seen as critical to improving research commercialisation, innovation capacity and technology-led economic development in Nigeria.
National Population Commission (NPC) has announced commencement of full digital registration of births and deaths through the VitalReg platform, which became operational nationwide on July 1, 2026.
Chidi Ezeoke, federal commissioner representing Anambra, disclosed this in Awka during a press conference to announce commencement of full digital birth and death registration under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system and the marking of World Population Day commemorated every July 11.
He revealed that a total of 131 registration centres had been opened in the 21 local government headquarters and several communities in the state, adding that more centres would be opened later.
Ezeoke described the initiative as a major milestone in Nigeria’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) system, to ensure every birth and death in the country was captured through a digitally enabled registration platform.
“It builds on the launch of the E-CRVS system and the inauguration of the National Coordination Committee on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics by President Bola Tinubu on Nov. 8, 2023.
“A total of 4,011 functional registration centres has been established across the 774 LGAs of the federation and the commission iswas working to expand the number to about 8,000.
“In Anambra, 131 registration centres have been opened in the 21 local government headquarters and several communities. More centres had been proposed for the state,” he said.
According to the Commissioner, the VitalReg platform would provide faster registration services, 24-hour online access, digital certificate issuance where applicable, reduced paperwork and waiting time, improved data validation and a more secure national CRVS database.
While noting that the platform would serve as a foundational database to support other national data systems and strengthen interoperability across Nigeria’s digital identity ecosystem, Ezeoke urged Nigerians and other stakeholders to support the initiative by ensuring prompt registration of all births and deaths.
Speaking on the 2026 World Population Day themed, “Realising the Hopes and Aspirations of Young People – Today and for the Future”, the Commissioner called for greater investment in education, healthcare, skills development, decent employment opportunities and youth participation in governance for sustainable national development.
Earlier, Mr Obiakonwa Okagwu, state director, NPC, said the occasion served as a reminder of great opportunities provided to harness young people’s capabilities, which he said would shape the future of the country when adequately harnessed.
He called on residents to take registration of births and deaths as national responsibility, just as he urged the media to take the message on civil registration to all parts of the State.
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