News
NIMC Upgrades ABIS to 100m Capacity
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), charged with providing Nigerians state-of-the-art identity card system and database system has upgraded its Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) first deployed in 2010 to 100 million capacity.
Mr. Anthony Okwudiafor, director, Corporate Communications, NIMC, said the ABIS when it was first deployed had only two bimodal functionalities – fingerprint and face, but a third functionality has been added which is ‘Iris’.
He said “Government had approved the upgrade to 70 million database record size on the two modal functionalities as part of the N30.066n billion three (3) year funding approved for the accelerated implementation of the back end component of the National Identity Management System (NIMS) in 2011. But the management of NIMC had been able to utilise the same funding to achieve a higher upgrade due to its cordial relationship with the service providers L1 identity Solutions, USA”.
This means that the NIMC will be able to process volume databases from institutions like INEC and NCC, since the ‘de-duplication’ system, the ABIS, now has a larger record size capacity capable of taking all the records. The ABIS is what enables the determination of unique identities in the database before the National Identification Number (NIN) is issued to an individual.
Okwudiafor further noted that the deployment plan includes an upscaling in a matter of hours to 200million whenever the Commission desires. This means that the ABIS infrastructure is currently the largest in Sub Saharan Africa. Already, eight (8) members of staff of NIMC have been trained on the use of the system which will be maintained in partnership with a local technology solutions firm and the Biometric Unit of the NIMC.
It is also an important step that the Commission has taken towards achieving its mandate of integrating identity databases in government agencies. The facility is already in use for the planned roll out of the National Identity smart card to Nigerians scheduled for the second quarter of 2013.
EFCC
The African Development Bank Group last week approved an investment of €6.5 million in the Saviu II fund in order to support technology start-ups through their seed phase and first institutional fundraising, mainly in French-speaking Central and West Africa.
The Bank will invest €4.5 million as equity and €2 million as a first-loss hedging tranche on behalf of the European Commission, under the Boost Africa Programme.
This participation of the Bank Group will enable the Saviu II fund to give priority to companies with a strong technological or digital component.
Saviu II, the second investment vehicle of Saviu Partners, plans to invest between €500,000 and €3 million in about 20 technology or technology-oriented business-to-business start-ups in the seed phase or carrying out first institutional fundraising.
The Saviu II venture capital fund aims to make at least 60% of its commitments in the French-speaking countries of West and Central Africa: Côte d ‘Ivoire, Cameroon, Benin, Senegal, Togo, Burkina Faso and Mali.
The fund can also co-invest in promising technology companies in East Africa that have a strong team and business model, and whose strategy includes entering the market in French-speaking West African countries and establishing a strong presence there.
In addition, the fund will devote a dedicated envelope to pre-seed investments, focusing on minority equity investments, usually in co-investment with studios, incubators or other ecosystem partners.
Nigerian Government has signed a $1.3 billion Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) via the Solid Minerals Development Fund (SMDF) to fund an alumina refinery, national geoscience mapping, and a strategic investment vehicle for mining growth.
Special Assistant to the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Segun Tomori, said the refinery will process one million tonnes of bauxite yearly using a modern Bayer process, powered by an on-site gas-fired cogeneration plant.
Minister Dele Alake called it a transformative milestone boosting GDP, aligning with reforms that improve investment climate, regulations, and licensing to attract private capital. He directed agencies to fast-track permits.
The 20-year project at 95% utilization eyes 19 million tonnes total output, $1.2 billion annual GDP addition, $25 billion economic impact, and $8 billion forex earnings, per feasibility studies.
SMDF Executive Secretary Fatima Shinkafi termed it the agency’s biggest funding deal, supporting value-addition policy.
The partnership extends to geoscience mapping for mineral data, de-risking exploration, and a joint vehicle for mining assets.
Permanent Secretary Engr. Farouk Yabo praised the reforms. Shinkafi signed for government; AFC’s Franklin Edochie for the corporation, witnessed by AFC CEO Samaila Zubairu.
Tomori positioned it as Nigeria’s largest private mining investment and FDI magnet.
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