President Bola Tinubu, on Friday, signed the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Act 2026 into law.
The new Act repeals the 2007 legislation, strengthening Nigeria’s legal framework for digital identity management, cybersecurity, and national security.
Explaining the benefits of the legislation in a post on X, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, minister of interior, said the new law establishes a modern legal framework for identity management in line with global best practices, emerging technologies, and Nigeria’s expanding digital economy.
It also designates the NIMC as Nigeria’s foot certification authority for the national public key infrastructure (PKI) and digital public infrastructure (DPI).
The legislation, according to the minister, empowers the commission to provide secure digital identity, authentication and electronic trust services while enabling seamless data exchange across public and private sector institutions.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, today assented to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Act 2026.
The new Act, which repeals and replaces the NIMC Act of 2007, is a landmark piece of legislation, signifying a transformative milestone in Nigeria’s journey towards.
“It also reinforces the national identification number (NIN) as Nigeria’s foundational identity credential under the “one person, one identity” principle,” he wrote.
Speaking after the signing event at the State House in Abuja, Tunji-Ojo said the Act would strengthen identity management, database harmonisation, interoperability, and secure digital authentication.
According to the minister, the legislation provides the legal foundation for Nigeria’s evolving digital and security architecture.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio described the legislation as a landmark reform that would improve national planning, infrastructure development, border management, and security.
“We wanted legislation that would outlive us and serve generations of Nigerians because digital identity is central to national development,” he said.
Akpabio said the national assembly subjected the bill to extensive legislative scrutiny, including public hearings and international benchmarking, before its passage.
He added that integrating identity databases with security platforms had already strengthened law enforcement and would further enhance Nigeria’s security architecture.
On her part, Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director-general of the NIMC, said Tinubu’s assent is a historic milestone that modernises Nigeria’s identity management framework nearly two decades after the commission was established.
She said the Act establishes NIMC as the federal government’s trusted digital identity authority, with responsibility for secure authentication, encryption, digital signatures and trusted electronic services.
“The law will strengthen cybersecurity, improve public service delivery, expand financial and digital inclusion, promote confidence in online transactions and accelerate Nigeria’s digital transformation,” Coker-Odusote said.
She added that the commission would implement the law with transparency, professionalism and strict data protection standards to ensure every Nigerian benefits from a secure and inclusive digital identity ecosystem.
In July 2024, the commission said the national assembly had embarked on the amendment of the NIMC Act to enhance Nigeria’s identification (ID) system.
