Vice President Kashim Shettima on Wednesday hailed the sweeping reforms in Nigeria’s digital identity ecosystem under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, describing the transformation as unprecedented and a critical step towards building a sovereign digital future.

He credited the progress to reforms being implemented by the management of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), particularly the enactment of the NIMC Act 2026, which he said lays the foundation for a secure and modern digital governance system.

Speaking while receiving a delegation from NIMC, led by its Director-General, Engr. Abisoye Odusote, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Shettima said the new legal framework would accelerate the establishment of a sovereign Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for Nigeria.

He noted that the reforms would also drive the country’s transition from paper-based administration to secure digital governance anchored on robust trust architecture.

The Vice President commended Odusote for repositioning NIMC from a conventional identity database custodian into what he described as Nigeria’s foundational digital authority within a short period.

He described her leadership as exceptional and urged the commission’s management to sustain the momentum by embracing more technology-driven innovations in support of the Tinubu administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

According to him, the administration is implementing bold reforms across critical sectors, including education, healthcare, financial inclusion and digital governance, with the aim of improving public service delivery and enhancing citizens’ access to government services.

Earlier, Odusote congratulated President Tinubu on signing the NIMC Act 2026 into law, describing the legislation as a watershed in Nigeria’s identity management system.

She said the new law would enable seamless interoperability among government databases, allowing agencies to exchange information securely while making government services more accessible and efficient for citizens.

Highlighting achievements already recorded, the NIMC Director-General disclosed that the Nigerian Immigration Service now relies on the National Identification Number (NIN) for passport issuance and renewal.

She added that the NIN has become the country’s single source of truth for identity verification, with insurance firms, financial institutions and several public agencies already integrated into the emerging national digital public infrastructure.

The NIMC Act 2026 replaces the 2007 legal framework, providing the foundation for Nigeria’s transition to a sovereign Digital Public Infrastructure designed to strengthen national control over digital identity systems, enhance trust in public services and reduce reliance on foreign digital infrastructure.