121 million NIN enrollments: why some states perform better than others

The National Identification Management System (NIMC) has released the June 2025 National Identification Number (NIN) enrollment figures, and the total enrollment now stands at 121,404,601. 

The 7 million additions in the first half of the year testify to NIMC’s commitment to its promise of registering 85% of the Nigerian population by December 2025. Yet, the commission needs to enrol 67 million more Nigerians, as the country’s total population is currently estimated at over 220 million. 

But, NIMC has promised that 100 million Nigerians will be captured by December. Its successful addition of over 79,000 inmates and plan to deploy corps members into rural areas shows what is possible.

However, an analysis of the enrollment figures across the states reveals a significant trend that is crucial to future adoption.

NIN registration: A close look at the numbers 

Data shows that 10 states (Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Ogun, Oyo, Katsina, Abuja, Rivers, Delta, and Jigawa) account for 59 million enrolments. This represents 48.62% of the total. The top 5 states account for an accumulated 40.8 million (33.64%). 

Lagos State leads with almost 13 million NIN enrollment. That translates to 10.60% of the total. Kano State follows closely with 11 million (9.13%). Kaduna State is 3rd with 7 million (5.9%). Ogun State follows with 5 million enrolments (4.1%). And, Oyo State crowns the top 5 with 4.6 million (3.8%).

Interestingly, Lagos State has maintained the top spot since the commencement of the NIN registration exercise alongside Kano State. A major shift in the top five saw Kaduna State displace Ogun, occupying the third position. 

At the rare end of the numbers, the states with the lowest enrollment have only accumulated 16.2 million in total, representing 13.35%. 

With 791,563 enrollment as of June 2025, Bayelsa state is the least, representing 0.67% of the nationwide figure. Ebonyi state followed with 1.01 million (0.83%), Ekiti state with 1.1 million (0.96%), Cross-River state with 1.4 million (1.16%), and Taraba state with 1.8 million enrollments (1.52%).

A twist: performance based on population

While there have been prevailing concerns about states that gathered the least NIN enrollment numbers, a look at the population of the top 10 and the lowest 10 states presents a different story.

A percentage of population comparison of enrollees (per 2022 data) reveals that some states in the least 10 states have a higher enrollment performance than states in the top 10.

For instance, 57.77% of Kwara State’s (bottom 10) population is enrolled, surpassing 39.98% of Katsina State’s (a top 10 state). Similarly, Rivers State boasts of a 48.41% coverage while Jigawa has 42.26%. And, other states in the bottom 10 category, such as Kogi (43.21%), Enugu (42.48%), Yobe (52.74%), and Taraba (51%) have performed better than Katsina State (39.98%). 

This shows that the enrollment numbers do not necessarily tell the entire story.

Indeed, states like Lagos and Kano, with over 10 million population, have the prerequisite for having more NIN enrollees than Bayelsa and Ekiti, which have about 3 million denizens each. 

See the full breakdown by states below:

	NIN enrollment across the Top and Bottom 10 States
	States	Enrollment	% State/Enrollment	Population	% Enrollement/Population
1	Lagos	12,904,160	10.60%	13,491,800	95.64%
2	Kano	11,079,864	9.13%	15,462,200	71.65%
3	Kaduna	7,159,651	5.90%	9,032,200	79.26%
4	Ogun	5,063,736	4.17%	6,379,500	79.37%
5	Oyo	4,667,498	3.84%	7,976,100	58.52%
6	Katsina	4,145,660	3.41%	10,368,500	39.98%
7	FCT Abuja	3,964,996	3.27%	4,567,500	86.80%
8	Rivers	3,619,651	2.98%	7,476,800	48.41%
9	Delta	3,292,258	2.71%	5,636,100	58.41%
10	Jigawa	3,169,263	2.61%	7,499,100	42.26%
	States	Enrollment	%State/Enrollment	Population	%Enrollment/Population
1	Imo	2,076,087	1.71%	5,459,300	38%
2	Kwara	2,051,490	1.68%	3,551,000	57.77%
3	Enugu	1,992,390	1.64%	4,690,100	42.48%
4	Kogi	1,930,432	1.60%	4,466,800	43.21%
5	Yobe	1,925,027	1.58%	3,649,600	52.74%
6	Taraba	1,843,475	1.52%	3,609,800	51%
7	Cross-River	1,412,341	1.16%	4,406,200	32%
8	Ekiti	1,159,542	0.96%	3,592,200	32.27%
9	Ebonyi	1,017,938	0.83%	3,242,500	31.40%
10	Bayelsa	791,563	0.67%	2,537,400	31.20%

As evident from the table, except the country’s capital, Abuja, all the states in the top 10 rank have more than 5 million residents, while all states in the bottom 10 have less, apart from Imo state. 

Issues with NIN registration 

The low NIN enrollment in states can stem from a variety of factors. These include limited awareness and sensitisation campaigns, and logistical challenges. 

Another crucial factor is access to enrollment centres, especially in rural and poor communities. Areas where such centres exist face intractable issues of network connectivity, causing delays to authentication and verification. 

A report noted that some states lack enough enrollment machines and personnel to handle the volume of people seeking NIN registration. There are also reported issues of delays in card issuance and complex requirements, which contribute to low enrollment rates. 

While the NIN registration is free by NIMC, there have been reports of extortion and unethical practices during enrollment. Some Nigerians have reported on social media that they paid fees ranging from N1,000 to N5,000.

These have eroded public trust and discouraged participation. 

There is also the perennial problem of apathy and ignorance of the populace. Recall that NIMC reportedly closed down centres across eight local government areas in Bayelsa State owing to poor participation.

What NIMC is doing… 

However, the NIMC has been intensifying efforts to meet its 2025 target. The commission’s Director-General, Coker-Odusote, revealed that 100 million more Nigerians would be captured by December, and they are working to meet the target.

While a mandatory NIN enrollment system was launched in September 2015, the agency fell short of its 180 million enrollment target by June 2024. Consequently, the deadline was extended to December 2026.

The commission has also partnered with the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to train selected Youth Corps members to reach local areas.

Similarly, the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), with approval from the NIMC, has registered 59,786 inmates (74% of the country’s total inmate population of 80,879) in an ongoing exercise across correctional centres nationwide.

The NIMC boss also explained that the agency is open to working with more partners across every ward and nationwide.