INEC, NIMC Move to Harmonize Databases
Abuja — Nigeria is moving closer to a system where citizens can vote from any location in the country, as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) intensify efforts to harmonize their biometric databases.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this on Wednesday when he received the Director-General of NIMC, Engr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote, and her management team at INEC headquarters in Abuja.
Yakubu explained that the partnership would make the NIMC database the “single source of truth” for identity verification, with Nigeria’s voters’ register eventually drawn directly from it.
“In many parts of the world, the national voters’ register is derived from the citizenship database. When the time comes, Nigeria will not be different. This will open the door for seamless voting anywhere across the country,” he said.
As part of the initiative, NIMC officials have been deployed to selected Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) centres to enroll Nigerians for the National Identification Number (NIN) alongside their voter registration.
Yakubu noted that a pilot scheme conducted in Anambra State from July 8 to 20, 2025, paved the way for a nationwide rollout. NIMC, he added, will soon publish details of CVR centres where its staff will be available, as well as procedures for joint voter and NIN registration.
Describing the partnership as a milestone, the INEC Chairman said the collaboration would strengthen the electoral process and further enhance its credibility and inclusiveness.
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