Nigerians Groan Under Digital Identity Regime That Turns Basic Rights into Privileges

Nigeria’s human rights performance already ranks among the world’s weakest, at 120th of 143 countries globally and 23rd of 34 in Sub-Saharan Africa in the 2025 World Justice Project Rule of Law Index. Its digital identity system, conceived as a foundational pillar of the country’s emerging Digital Public Infrastructure, has further strained it. Designed to unlock access to rights and essential services, the National Identification Number has become a strict gatekeeper. Today, a valid and functional NIN is required for healthcare, education, banking, employment, telecommunications and social welfare. But for many of the over 126 million Nigerians whom the identity custodian, National Identity Management  Commission (NIMC), said it has enrolled, this requirement  is out of reach, because inevitable life  events like marriage, relocation, or even  NIMC’s own errors render their identities unusable.  Advocates warn that conditioning citizens’ survival on a digital identity riddled with gaps, and no clear path to redress is a breach of fundamental human rights, reports Omolabake Fasogbon

While his classmates celebrated their matriculation, 18-year-old Seun Adewale stood aside. The aspiring engineer would not join his peers at university that year, not because he was not enrolled or had a disciplinary issue, but because of a simple discrepancy in the arrangement of his name on his NIN record and Senior Secondary School Examination (SSCE) result. This prevented him from registering for Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination crucial for university admission.

JAMB had repeatedly warned that data supplied must tally with NIN record. Aware of the risk, Adewale moved to correct the error using NIMC’s self-service modification portal after the commission suspended in-person corrections. Despite paying N2,000, a fee NIMC had earlier promised would not apply to those whose errors originated from enrollment agents, the process failed Adewale repeatedly until registration closed. 

“I tried several times but the portal repeatedly indicated “success,” yet my name remained unchanged,” he recalled.

Desperate, knowing his future depended on this fix, he visited NIMC’s Agbado/Oke-Odo LCDA Liaison Office in Lagos, one of those the commission directed citizens stuck on the portal to seek assistance. 

“The official said it would have been easier to help if I hadn’t started the process. He assured to fix it, demanding N12,000, above the official N2,000 fee. I paid, but the error remained. I couldn’t register for the exam that year,” he said, his voice heavy with frustration.

Though counted among the enrolled Nigerians, Adewale was functionally invisible when it mattered most. His story is far from unique. For another NIN holder identified on X as Timothy, same modification failure cost him a scholarship.

Frustrated, Timothy vented on the micro-blogging platform, tagging NIMC: “I missed a scholarship because of you o. When your self-service portal logged me out. Almost a month now, I’m unable to delink my account.”

The duo’s ordeals are not isolated; they are reflection of daily reality across Nigeria, where identity gaps are steadily turning basic rights into privileges.

NIMC’s policy that widens exclusion net, tramples human rights

Digital identity is globally recognised as a core building block of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) alongside payments and data exchange systems. DPI is premised on resilience, universality and accessibility. It is meant to reduce friction, but lapses such as system downtime, portal failures, weak integration between NIMC and key agencies, and a near- impossible rectification of data have made that gateway impenetrable for many, leaving a mounting trail of forfeited opportunities, denied rights and stalled lives across the country.

These flaws, experts argue, justify decoupling essential services from identity validation, stressing the approach digitises exclusion. 

Under NIMC’s 2024 policy, routine in-person corrections at physical centres were halted, with updates confined to a smartphone-based self-service portal. While intended to curb extortion and enhance security, this procedure effectively excludes over half of Nigerians, who according to World Bank report, lack digital literacy and 72 percent of adults without smartphones, according to Research ICT Africa. Even then, the digitally skilled, like Adewale, remain trapped by glitches. 

Visits to cybercafés and a range of enrollment agents uncovered a surge in data correction requests, a trend NIMC spokesman Dr. Kayode Adegoke confirmed to THISDAY runs into hundreds of thousands. 

The commission further stipulated that correction accounts are uniquely tied to the original device and browser used at registration.

“Your self-service account is uniquely tied to the browser and device used during registration,”  NIMC’s Spokesman, Adegoke declared in a public advisory.

Digital identity is grounded on the principle of resilience and universal access, Yet, NIMC’s rules restricting corrections to an exact device and browser used at initial registration run contrary to these very principles, locking out anyone who may have lost, damaged or cannot access the device.

Technology Researcher, Olufemi Ariyo described the approach as unjust and inaccessible, noting that database errors are inevitable often due to human evolving nature or even NIMC’s lapses, adding that “citizens should not suffer to correct them”.

“Digital identity should serve as a bridge, not a gatekeeper,” he argued in an opinion article published on The Cable. “When errors block access to essential services, technical failures become social injustice. It becomes a matter of fairness and inclusion.”

Approximately 94 million Nigerians remain unenrolled, Technology Policy Advisor, Jide Awe added, that many enrolled are as good as not, adding, “their identity only matters if it serves a purpose.”

From a human rights standpoint, Digital Rights Attorney, Olumide Babalola noted, “When the state creates a mandatory identification requirement but blocks meaningful correction, exclusion becomes state-caused harm.” 

While the commission defended the framework on data security and prevention of unauthorised access, critics argue it exposes citizens the more and multiplies exclusivity, urging a flexible process that genuinely helps, rather than a purely technical one. 

Beyond technical flaws, digital rights advocates warn the approach risks undermining protections guaranteed under Article 6 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees legal identity.

Babalola warned, “Human rights standards are clear, no exclusion from services due to digital illiteracy, all digital systems must have non-digital alternatives, and accessibility must accommodate disabilities. A digital divide cannot become a legal divide.”

Global bodies, most notably the World Bank through the Identification for Development (ID4D) initiative, have consistently backed Nigeria’s identity infrastructure, initially targeting 148 million enrollments, later extended its  $430 million support facility until December 2026 to ensure every Nigerian holds a functional identity.

The federal government has repeatedly pledged no Nigerian will be denied verifiable identity, lived experiences tell otherwise, which experts warned diverge from the global financier’s goals and reduce chances of 2026 target. 

 Cost of correction: fish trader denied micro-loan to expand trade

If Adewale and Timothy, with their tech exposure and assistance from NIMC’s partners could not fix their data, rural dwellers and the tech-unaware stand slimmer chance. Among them is a fish trader known only as Mrs. Foluke, alongside 84 per cent of Nigerian graduates, who according to Phillips Consulting report lack digital literacy.

 For Foluke who is neither literate nor owns a smartphone, meeting NIMC’s prerequisites for updating her address after relocation was impossible, a snag that cost her a micro loan to expand her business.

Hers underscores what technology researcher Ariyo termed “human variability” the normal life changes that rigid systems must anticipate.

Human lives, Ariyo argues, are in constant flux. “People move, change, and marry, yet technology demands the consistency that life rarely provides.

“Identity systems must be designed in tune with safeguards for human variability and systemic and graceful error recovery”, he added. 

Foluke remains counted in NIMC’s statistics, but functionally excluded.

On the ground realities

Foluke’s plight, in particular, led THISDAY to test NIMC’s promised remedy of centres designated to assist the digitally illiterate. A field visit to the one at the commission’s Lagos Head Office in Alausa, Ikeja, was revealing.

THISDAY reporter, posing as a citizen without digital literacy seeking record modification, was denied entry at the security post.  Access was granted only after persistent pleading, this is at the same centre NIMC designates as a last resort for those stuck.

“No one can assist you. Do it yourself on your phone,” the guard said bluntly.

A later referral to an official identified as Sodiq first requested N32,000 above NIMC’s advertised N28,574 fee for date of birth update, then dismissed the process when presented with a feature phone.

“You need a smartphone,” he said curtly.

When asked about alternatives, he suggested borrowing an unused device or wait until one could be purchased.

A further plea for his own device was, predictably, refused, consistent with NIMC’s policy restricting modifications to the original enrollment device.

All of NIMC’s provided remedies, including a visit to its offices and liaison centres offer no real relief for the digitally unequipped, including Foluke, who lost a business expansion opportunity.

A 2023 EFInA survey on Access to Financial Services in Nigeria found 26 percent of Nigerian adults remain financially excluded, a gap experts traced to failures in digital identity access.

Deeper pain

From botched travel plans to disrupted mobile services, denied banking access and social services, the struggles are unending.

A cybercafé operator in Abule-Egba, Lagos, Mr. Adewale Toyin, revealed non-NIMC agents are now exploiting data correction glitches as business opportunity. FIJ media also reported scammers exploiting the same loophole with fake NIMC websites promising free corrections to target unsuspecting Nigerians.

“An admission seeker just left here before you came, asking if I do data modification,” Toyin stated. 

The student, he explained, had been duped by a youth corps member who claimed connections at NIMC headquarters in Abuja.

“This was after weeks of unsuccessful attempts on NIMC’s portal to fix a name misspelt.

“Many of my colleagues now take advantage of innocent applicants. Some driven by profit won’t even warn students about risks of sitting for exams with invalid identity. Many of them are unaware. I won’t do that”, Toyin explained.

Recounting cases where failed and or delayed correction process had cost people once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, Toyin said the hardest-hitting for him was a man seeking army recruitment. 

“Every portal attempt to correct his name redirected him elsewhere. Even NIMC agents couldn’t help on time. It became successful just a day after the recruitment portal closed,” Toyin narrated.

NIMC had promised quick and easy modification on its portal, but delays and outright failure persist. Spokesperson, Adegoke told THISDAY it was due to system maintenance, backend verification checks, and high traffic.

Official data reflects the strain: Monthly enrollment slowed to an average of 648,888 between January and September 2024, down from 1.05 million during the same period in 2023, a decline NIMC blamed on technical issues and capacity upgrades.

Away from technical failings, Awe who also founded Jidaw.com argued NIMC’s over reliance on technology and security at the expense of citizen support and engagement is a root cause.  This, he added, allowed systemic failures to persist. 

NIMC’s policy backfires, Extortion Thrives More

Although NIMC’s spokesman, Adegoke insisted no front-end partner can modify portal data, field findings suggest otherwise. During THISDAY’s visit to Abule-Egba, Lagos, a front-end partner known as Big Sam Venture demanded N62,000 fee for a date-of-birth correction, more than double the official N28,574, assuring payment guaranteed success.

Questioned on inflated fee, he replied, “Go and do it on your phone at the official price if you can. You’re here because you can’t. Others pay and get it done. We also pay to get it done.”

Similar to previous media reports, Cybercafé operator Mr. Toyin told THISDAY that successful modifications he knows of were done through backdoor agents, some allegedly linked to NIMC officials. 

“But it’s a 50-50 gamble, if it fails, you lose your money,” he added. 

Toyin stressed surge in modification requests is fuelling exploitation of masses. 

A trend, Policy Advisor, Awe argued should prompt urgent policy review that addresses system design, institutional mindset, governance, and citizen inclusion. 

NIMC reported a 40 per cent drop in extortion as of 2025, However, rigidity of current policy, coupled with widespread accounts of exploitation by both banned and accredited partners, suggests those gains may be eroding.

Identity Gaps, Rights Implications

Digital rights lawyers and tech policy advocates warn that the current trajectory risks violating both domestic and international legal standards.

Under Nigeria’s Data Protection Act 2023, personal data must be accurate and up to date. Where citizens are practically blocked from correcting inaccuracies, legal redress may arise.

Beyond national law, experts cite obligations under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which guarantees legal recognition, non-discrimination and access to public services.

“A policy that disproportionately harms vulnerable groups violates equality guarantees,” said digital rights lawyer, Babalola.

He, like Awe, maintains that identity, beyond biometric capture, requires effective recognition, usability and accessibility. 

“Where correcting identity errors remains practically impossible, placing access to essential services on an error-free identity directly breaches African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. 

“Specifically Article 5, guaranteeing legal status; Article 13, guaranteeing access to public services; and the non-discrimination protections under Articles 18(3) and 28”, he stated. 

He added that rights-compliant identity systems must provide accessible administrative remedies like walk-in correction centres, device-independent modification options and clear timelines for resolving errors, none of which NIMC currently offers at scale.

Digital rights advocate, Gbenga Sesan cited Section 24(1)(e) of the Nigerian Data Protection Act, 2023, which requires personal data to be accurate and up to date.

 “Where citizens are blocked from correcting inaccurate records, their rights have been violated and they can seek redress under the Data Protection Act of 2023,” he said.

Babalola warned Nigeria is ignoring a major lesson from Kenya. In 2021, Kenya’s digital identity system, Huduma Namba was declared partly unconstitutional over discrimination, exclusion risks and data protection concerns.

Lessons from global precedents

Nigeria’s identity challenges are not unique. Globally, digital identity systems have driven exclusion, offering lessons for Nigeria, policy expert, Ariyo said.

He stressed identity failures should be treated as systemic issues, not individual burdens. 

Ariyo cited India’s Aadhaar programme, which initially locked millions out due to biometric mismatches, leading authorities to respond with grievance redress channels and alternative verification options.

Kenya’s Huduma Namba system expanded support centres and timelines for error resolution to address exclusion concern.  As for Estonia which is regarded as world’s most advanced digital nation, its model permits secure online corrections and human review to fix data discrepancies. 

Ariyo stated examples above reflect a rights-centred system genuinely designed to serve citizens.  Rights attorney, Babalola noted that international lessons also place responsibility on funders.

“The World Bank must go beyond funding and embed safeguards into its support, including human rights impact assessments, digital exclusion audits, independent grievance mechanisms and mandatory offline alternatives.”

“Under international development finance standards, funders share responsibility to prevent foreseeable human rights harm,” he stated.

Policy advisor, Awe equally urged the global lender to prioritise functional identities over enrolment numbers, insisting support must reward usability, corrections and inclusivity.

Until correction becomes as accessible as enrolment, experts warn millions may remain counted in databases but excluded in reality, legally identified, yet functionally invisible.