Illegal Printing, Issuance Of Plastic Card Persist Despite Govt Warning

The National Identification Number (NIN) system was introduced in Nigeria to provide a reliable means of identifying all citizens and other legal residents. While over 100 million people have been successfully enrolled and assigned NINs, the government has not been able to produce and distribute permanent identification cards. The situation is raising serious concerns, as the prolonged delay has created a vacuum now being exploited by unscrupulous individuals to produce and sell fake NIN plastic cards despite government declaration of such as an illegality that will attract sanctions. GBENGA SALAU reports on the emergence and operation of the black market for the fake plastic identification card.

“I HAVE my National Identification Number (NIN), but they told me to pay N5,000 for a permanent card,” said Sola Akande, a Lagos resident who waited for five years for his permanent identity card to be issued, and when it was not forth-coming he procured one through a business centre.

While Akande waited for five years, many other Nigerians who have registered for more than a decade are still not able to get their permanent ID cards. Samuel Benjamin is one of such persons who lamented the snail speed that characterizes the operation of the National Identification Management Commission (NIMC), especially in making plastic card available to enrollees.

He said he registered in 2014 when the only place for registration in Lagos was the state’s head office of the NIMC in Alausa, Ikeja. Till date, he has not been able to get the plastic ID card and has visited the Lagos head office of the agency severally. He said that he was there again in June 2025, but was told there was no light, so he should wait like many others to be attended to or come back at another time. He left the Lagos NIMC office unhappy. The story of Akande and Benjamin highlights a growing crisis. While millions of Nigerians have enrolled for their NIN, only a few have received the permanent card.

The agency was established by the NIMC Act No. 23 of 2007, with the mandate to establish, own, operate, maintain and manage the country’s national identity database, register persons covered by the Act, assign a unique national identification number, and issue GMPC to those who are citizens of the country, as well as, other people legally residing within the country.

The NIMC recently revealed that the NIN has risen to 122 million, marking a 49 per cent increase since January 2022, when enrolment stood at 72.7 million.

The Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of NIMC, Abisoye Coker-Odusote, also said that no Nigerian should be left behind in the country’s digital identity transformation. He disclosed that over 7,167 front-end enrolment agents and partners have been revalidated and retrained to serve the public professionally, with strict monitoring mechanisms now in place. However, the body in charge of providing the identity card has had trouble issuing it to millions of people who have registered.

Experts say the production of physical identity documents is “very capital intensive” and it may pose some challenges where the “support infrastructure is fragile.”

The Guardian gathered that the concept of a national identity card is still a struggle in Nigeria. Acute infrastructural challenges stand in the way as the country carries on with the issuance of mobile digital as well as physical ID cards. The prolonged nature of these challenges means that the country may not be able to sustain the production of physical ID cards in the long run, according to an expert.

Only recently, the government of St. Kitts and Nevis disclosed that it would conduct a digital ID pilot from January next year ahead of a countrywide rollout. This comes as the country’s Prime Minister, Dr. Terrance Drew, announced in a nationwide address that work on the project was far advanced.

According to the government, the pilot will see the issuance of digital ID to a limited number of citizens, and they’ll use the credential either online or as physical cards to access a number of public services. The pilot will also focus on service integration, system security and user experience.

Drew emphasised that it would act as a major catalyst for the country’s digital transformation drive. He said everything was on track to ensure nationwide rollout by the middle of 2026, with around 25,000 digital IDs expected to be issued.
Sri Lanka’s digital ID system is expected to be ready by the first quarter of next year, according to Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya, chief adviser to the President on Digital Economy and Information Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) chairperson.

“We expect it to be ready by February or March next year,” Wijayasuriya told media recently. “Following this, the population registration process will commence, covering the entire citizen base of the country. The timeline on registering the entire population will depend on how efficiently the rollout proceeds.”

Both countries are good examples of nations that are determined to have their citizens captured digitally and given their cards. The idea of a national ID in Nigeria dated back to the Civil War era in 1967, when the then Head of State General Yakubu Gowon first proposed it. However, the initiative collapsed amid wartime chaos.

In 1976, the idea returned under General Olusegun Obasanjo as Head of State, and by September 1, 1979, it was officially launched via the Directorate of National Civil Registration (DNCR) in the Ministry of Internal Affairs— targeting every Nigerian aged 18 and above.

Initially funded with $16 million and awarded to Avant Incorporation (USA), the contract was re-awarded by President Shehu Shagari at N56 million—later adjusted to N90 million owing to exchange rate shifts. Avant procured vital equipment before the military seized power in 1983.

Under General Ibrahim Babangida’s rule, the project transitioned to Afro Continental, with a nine-month timeline given that much of Avant’s hardware was in place. The interim government of Ernest Shonekan stalled the initiative, and General Sani Abacha further deprioritised it. In 1998, General Abdulsalami Abubakar relaunched the effort, allocating $38.4 million to a consortium led by Chams Limited Nigeria.

With Olusegun Obasanjo’s return in 1999, momentum picked up. In 2001, a new contract—valued at N38 billion ($214 million) — was granted to France’s Sagem to produce an e-ID card for the 2003 elections and 2006 census.

More than 52 million people were registered and over 37 million cards issued, but corruption allegations against Sagem—ruled on in a French court—derailed the initiative.

The Guardian gathered that what many, if not majority of those who have registered, carry around is the slip that was issued to them after registration.

Although some Nigerians who are not comfortable with moving around with the paper slip issued by NIMC and probably had waited endlessly in getting notification from the agency to come forward for the permanent cards have devised a means of producing a permanent plastic card, mostly from business centres and cyber cafes, who have seen it as a means of making quick money.

Thus, the inability of the NIMC to meet demand has led to frustration, disillusionment, and unintended consequences. One alarming outcome is the surge in fake NIN cards being produced and sold by private actors, taking advantage of the gap left by the state.

Providing insight to why she decided to visit the cyber café to produce a plastic national ID card, Suliyat Abioye, disclosed that she registered for the NIN in 2019, but she was finding it difficult moving around with the slip she was given, as it was too big to be carried around.

“And I might need the NIN at any time. So, I went back to Kosofe Local Council in Ogudu, where I registered for the NIN two times to get the plastic ID card, but they kept giving excuses. So, I just downloaded the app and saw the ID card dummy and brought it to life. It is already there, in form of ID card, I just paid the cafe guy and he brought the ID card out. I paid him N3000 if I remember vividly what I paid.”

While NIMC was seen to be failing in producing and making the permanent ID card available to the average Nigeria, some Nigerians, especially business centres, who are cashing in on this loopholes to make money by producing a replica plastic national ID card have been warned to desist from doing so.

In March 2025, in a statement, the National Identity Management Commission raised an alarm over the unauthorised printing of National Identification Number cards by individuals, cyber cafés, and organisations across the country.

The commission cautioned the public against patronising such services, emphasising that only the official NIMC General Multi-Purpose Card is legally recognised.

In the statement issued by the Head of Corporate Communications of the agency, Kayode Adegoke, the NIMC described the illegal printing of NIN cards as a violation of the NIMC Act No. 23, 2007, warning that security agencies have been directed to clamp down on offenders.

He added: “The Commission has not authorised any individual or organisation to print any NIN card as a replacement for the official NIMC General Multi-Purpose Card. This act is illegal and punishable under the law.”

NIMC further advised Nigerians to stop using unauthorised NIN cards for identification, stressing that only the official NIN slip is valid and must be verified upon presentation for accessing services.

“The so-called NIN card being printed by some cyber cafés and individuals is not authorised by NIMC. On no account should it be presented as a means of identification,” the commission stated.

To curb this fraudulent activity, NIMC disclosed that security agencies have been notified and mandated to apprehend those involved in the illegal business.

“Anyone caught printing, selling, or issuing fake NIN cards will be made to face the full wrath of the law,” Adegoke warned. Four months after the NIMC issued the warning, nothing seems to have changed. The Guardian checks in Lagos revealed that those in the business of illegally producing the plastic national ID card are still open for business and are openly advertising and calling for patronage. And it was learnt it is same in many cities across Nigeria. This is despite NIMC threatened that it will arrest and prosecute anyone found engaging in the illegality aside that security officers are being put on the watch.

But from Festac to Mushin, Ketu to Ikorodu, Ajegunle, Agege and Alimosho, it is still business as usual. Many of the business centres visited did not just advertise that they are in the business of printing the plastic national ID card they were not transacting the business underground.

All the people interacted with offered varied amount to print the ID. It was between N3000 to N6000. They all also said that the card will be made available on the same day the payment is made once the NIN slip or NIN is made available. One even pledged to make it available in less than two hours after payment.

Aside from those who have completed their registration and having issues with collecting their permanent cards, there are many who needed to make an adjustment on their cards which have not being coming easy.

Also sharing their experiences, Grace Bassey said that she applied for her NIN card almost three years ago, and the agency kept telling her that it is not available.

“I had to pay N5,000 at a business centre to print something that looks official. What choice do we have when the government keeps failing us? This is despite I don’t trust those business centres. Anyone can fake a NIN card now. How can the government allow this mess? It’s dangerous; your identity can be cloned. It’s embarrassing that in 2025, a whole country like Nigeria cannot produce ID cards for its citizens. People are being extorted by NIMC officials and cyber cafés just to get what should be free.”

Another Nigerian, Abubakar Ibrahim, revealed: “I registered in 2020, but still no card. No message. No tracking system, nothing. Their systems are always down. You go there and sit for hours just to be told to come back next week. If you don’t pay them, you’ll never get anything. They make it hard on purpose. They keep saying ‘check back’—for years now!”

On her part, Janet Adams disclosed that she corrected her name but it still shows the wrong one. “The bank rejected my NIN. I had to pay a café guy to print my NIN on a plastic card because NIMC was silent.”

But the National Identity Management Commission said it is also working to reduce malpractices within its system. It recently said that it has reduced incidents of extortion and unofficial charges in the identity enrolment process by over 40 per cent.

According to Coker-Odusote, the sharp reduction in illegal charges is a direct result of reforms introduced by NIMC to curb racketeering and unauthorised payments, which have for years plagued the national identity registration process..

“Enrolment for the National Identification Number remains free. We have standardised modification and authentication fees, and these are publicly disclosed. Our enforcement of a transparent fee structure has resulted in a 40 per cent drop in extortion and unofficial charges,” the regulator said.

She explained that prior to her assumption of office, complaints about exploitative fees at enrolment centres were widespread, fuelling public distrust in the system.

However, she noted that the commission had since prioritised transparency and stakeholder accountability, ensuring that Nigerians no longer have to pay above the legally mandated fees. “We are addressing deep-rooted issues that once undermined public confidence in the enrolment process,” she said.

The NIMC chief added that the commission had introduced digital tools to reduce human interference in the registration process. These include the NINAuth mobile app, the Self-Service NIN Enrolment and Modification app, and Contactless Biometric Solutions, all designed to make the system more efficient, secure, and user-friendly.

Coker-Odusote also reiterated the commission’s commitment to inclusion, stressing that no Nigerian should be left behind in the country’s digital identity transformation.

According to her, over 7,167 front-end enrolment agents and partners have been revalidated and retrained to serve the public professionally, with strict monitoring mechanisms now in place.

In addition, NIMC has deployed grievance redress officers across all 36 states to handle complaints from Nigerians about enrolment centres and agents, with a 24/7 toll-free line available to report any misconduct.

The reforms are part of broader efforts by the Commission to build a unified, secure, and people-centred digital identity system that facilitates access to government services, financial inclusion, social protection, and national planning.

But with almost every government in Nigeria, there is a new development with the national ID card. So, it was not surprising, when the Tinubu administration promised to roll out multipurpose e-ID cards by May 2024 to individuals already issued NINs, though that promise has not been fulfilled more than a year after.

While some argue that physical cards are obsolete in the digital age, many Nigerians—especially in rural areas with limited digital access—still value tangible IDs.

One of the new ideas introduced by the Tinubu administration is the modification of the ID card for financial services, which some Nigerians say is redundant, as most Nigerians already hold ATM cards linked to their BVNs and NINs.

According to this category of people who kicked against this new drive, mandating another physical card risks duplicating existing systems and increasing complexity for users.

A high-profile lawsuit between Chams Plc and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) revolved around MasterCard-branded cards. The Federal High Court awarded Chams US $410,390.60 in damages and barred NIMC from using MasterCard’s logo. Consequently, millions of registered Nigerians could not receive their ID cards.

Despite numerous biometric registrations—by INEC, NPC, NIS, FRSC, NHIS, CBN (BVN), NCC, JAMB and WAEC—these parallel systems remained largely unintegrated.

By 2015, Nigeria had spent N121 billion on the identity card project. In 2020, the World Bank and EU backed the NIMC with a  $115 million loan via their ID4D program, intending to register 148 million Nigerians by 2024. Additionally, the European Investment Bank and French Development Agency contributed  $315 million.

In 2016, only 9.5 million Nigerians were enrolled in the NIMC National Identity Database (NIDB), with merely 300,000 cards issued out of one million e-IDs produced.

This financing sparked the “Digital Identity Ecosystem,” engaging both public and private stakeholders. As of December 2023, 104.16 million Nigerians held NINs—almost half of the nation’s estimated 210 million population NIMC now targets 200 million enrollments by 2025, contingent on ongoing federal support.

Yet the idea of a national ID card is not novel which is why many are wondering the reason Nigeria is grappling to make substantial headway with the project for decades.

For instance, India, a nation of 1.3 billion people, has successfully enrolled over 99 per cent of its adult population through Aadhaar. Developed countries such as the U.S. and Germany have maintained national ID systems since 1936 and 1950, respectively, benefiting from decades of refinement.

Efforts to get the Head of Corporate Communications of the NIMC, Kayode Adegoke, to speak on the challenges the agency is having to produce physical cards as well as its failure to implement its threat to apprehend and prosecute those producing the cards illegally were not successful. He did not respond to the message sent to his whatsap phone line and did not pick his call when his mobile phone was dialed.