File: The Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa.
80 Million Learners To Be Integrated Into Identity System.
The Federal Ministry of Education and the National Identity Management Commission have intensified collaboration to establish a single national identity system, with the education sector set to play a central role in integrating the records of nearly 80 million learners into Nigeria’s digital identity ecosystem.
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Thursday while receiving the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the National Identity Management Commission, Engr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote and her management team during a courtesy visit to his office in Abuja.
Alausa said the partnership aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s vision of leveraging technology to improve governance, transparency and service delivery, stressing that the education sector would provide full support to NIMC in strengthening Nigeria’s identity management system.
He commended the commission for what he described as remarkable progress in modernising the country’s identity infrastructure.
“I am delighted that NIMC, under the leadership of Engineer Bisoye Coker-Odusote, is setting standards that are comparable with the best anywhere in the world in identity management,” the minister said.
“Within a short period, the agency has been transformed in ways never seen before. This aligns with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s vision and the mandate he has given you. You have worked tirelessly to make the President proud by implementing every aspect of that mandate,” he said.
The minister noted that the recent signing of the new NIMC Act by Tinubu had created a stronger legal framework for collaboration among ministries, departments and agencies to establish what he described as “a single source of truth” for identity management across the country.
“Let me assure you that we in the education sector are your strongest partners. We will support everything your agency is doing to strengthen trust and credibility in Nigeria’s identity management system,” Alausa said.
He explained that the partnership is particularly critical to the development of Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure, adding that the education sector represents one of the country’s largest repositories of citizen data.
According to him, about 67 million learners are currently enrolled in Nigeria’s basic and post-basic education system, covering Early Childhood Care Development and Education, primary, junior secondary and senior secondary schools.
He added that when tertiary institution students and learners in technical and vocational education are included, the figure rises to nearly 80 million people, representing almost one-third of Nigeria’s estimated population.
“The education sector represents one of the largest pools of citizens in the country. Therefore, collaboration between NIMC and the education sector is essential,” he said.
Alausa revealed that the ministry had already developed the National Learners’ Identification Number, which is being aligned with the National Identification Number to ensure every learner’s record is harmonised with the National Education Management Information System.
According to him, integrating the two systems will enable government to verify learners’ identities, generate credible education statistics and improve planning, monitoring and policy implementation.
“This gives us access to credible biometric information linked to each learner’s NIN. We can now verify every learner’s identity and determine whether the individual is a Nigerian citizen or a legal resident with a valid identification number,” he said.
“This enables us to aggregate and disaggregate education data accurately, providing evidence-based information for policy formulation, interventions, planning, monitoring and evaluation.”
Reaffirming the ministry’s commitment, Alausa said, “Today, DG, I could not be happier with the progress we have made together. You have our full commitment. Whatever support you require from us to make your work easier in establishing a single source of truth for Nigeria, we will provide it.”
Responding, the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of NIMC, Engr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote commended the minister for the ongoing reforms in the education sector, describing them as transformative.
“On behalf of NIMC and indeed all Nigerians, we commend you for the remarkable work you have done. The transformation you have brought to the education sector is truly outstanding,” she said.
She assured the minister that NIMC would continue to support the Federal Ministry of Education in strengthening identity management across the sector.
“As the custodian of Nigeria’s identity system, NIMC will continue to support your efforts to strengthen identity management within the education sector,” Coker-Odusote said.
The collaboration between the Federal Ministry of Education and NIMC forms part of the Federal Government’s broader digital transformation agenda under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda. The partnership is expected to improve education planning, eliminate duplicate learner records, strengthen transparency in government interventions and enhance data-driven policymaking through the integration of the National Learners’ Identification Number with the National Identification Number and the National Education Management Information System. The initiative also supports the implementation of the recently signed NIMC Act, which seeks to deepen interoperability across government databases and establish a trusted national digital identity framework.
