By Emmanuel Ogbodo<\/p>\n
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has set September 14, 2024, as the final deadline for all telecom subscribers to link their Subscriber Identification Modules (SIMs) to their National Identity Numbers (NINs).<\/p>\n
The NCC has instructed all Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to ensure that the mandatory verification and linkage of SIMs to NINs are completed by this date to fully comply with the NIN-SIM linkage policy. By September 14, 2024, the Commission expects that no SIM in Nigeria will be active without a valid NIN.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe urge all members of the public who have not yet completed their NIN-SIM linkage, or who have encountered issues due to verification mismatches, to promptly visit their service providers to update their details before the deadline. Alternatively, approved self-service portals are available for this purpose,\u201d stated the NCC.<\/p>\n
In a statement shared with Technext, the NCC highlighted the significant progress made under the Federal Government\u2019s 2020 policy to link all SIMs to users’ NINs. Over 153 million SIMs have been successfully linked, representing an impressive compliance rate of 96%, a sharp increase from 69.7% in January 2024.<\/p>\n
The NCC reiterated that verifying all mobile users strengthens confidence in digital transactions, reduces the risk of fraud and cybercrime, and enhances participation in e-commerce, digital banking, and mobile money services, all of which promote financial inclusion and drive economic growth.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we approach the final phase of this critical process, the NCC seeks the continued cooperation of all Nigerians to achieve 100% compliance. The complete linkage of all SIM cards to NINs is essential for enhancing the trust and security of our digital economy,\u201d added the NCC.<\/p>\n
The compulsory NIN-SIM linkage exercise began in December 2020 when the government mandated telecom companies to bar unregistered SIM cards and those not linked to NINs. Since December 2023, the Commission has reviewed the deadline several times, with the most recent extension setting April 15, 2024, as the deadline for barring subscribers with four or fewer SIMs that had unverified NIN details. This deadline was later extended to July 31, 2024, to give consumers more time to ensure their NIN details were properly verified.<\/p>\n
Despite these extensions, many phone lines remain unlinked. Last month, the NCC ordered telecom companies to halt the suspension of SIMs\/numbers of subscribers who had not yet connected their NINs with their SIMs. This decision was made following the challenges posed by recent blockages.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe consumer is our priority, so considering the challenges caused by the blockages, the Commission has directed all operators to reactivate all lines disconnected over the weekend due to the short time available for consumers to undertake the verification of their NINs with their SIMs,\u201d the NCC stated. However, this grace period is limited, and reactivated consumers must complete the NIN-SIM linkage soon.<\/p>\n
Before this order, a protest broke out at the MTN office in Osogbo, Osun State, following the telecommunication company\u2019s decision to block SIM cards not yet linked to NINs. A viral video on social media showed a large crowd blocking the entrance to the MTN office, preventing traffic from passing.<\/p>\n
This protest followed a mass blocking exercise by MTN a day earlier, prompting many people to flood MTN offices to unblock their lines. Protesters criticised the company for blocking their SIMs without prior warning and demanded reinstatement.<\/p>\n
Numerous subscribers took to social media to express their frustration with MTN’s decision to bar their telephone lines over the NIN-SIM linkage without any warning, leaving them unable to make or receive calls or access the internet<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Emmanuel Ogbodo The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has set September 14, 2024, as the final deadline for all telecom subscribers to link their Subscriber Identification Modules (SIMs) to their National Identity Numbers (NINs). The NCC has instructed all Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to ensure that the mandatory verification and linkage of SIMs to NINs […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1201,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[172],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46093","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46093","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46093"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46093\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46096,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46093\/revisions\/46096"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46093"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46093"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46093"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}