Telecom Archives — Page 6 of 9 — Business Bells

Business Bells

Category: Telecom

  • NCC Gives New Directive on NIN for SIM Registration by Foreigners 

    NCC Gives New Directive on NIN for SIM Registration by Foreigners 

     

    The Nigerian Communications Commission has said foreigners not staying in Nigeria for up to two years do not need a National Identification number to register SIM cards.

     

    The regulatory body said this in its Revised National Identity Policy for SIM Card Registration.

     

    A portion of the document said, “Foreigners validly transiting through Nigeria or are employed in or reside in Nigeria for less than 24 months are exempted from the mandatory use of NIN requirement.

     

    “Persons in this category need to provide justification that they will be residing in Nigeria for less than two years.”

     

    However, NIN is compulsory for foreigners who have legal residency, or those who have lived in Nigeria for two years and above.

     

    “NIN is mandatory for foreigners with legal residency status or those living in Nigeria for two years and above. For those who do not already have a NIN, operators will capture the resident for NIN as part of the enrolment process, upon presentation of resident permit.

     

    “Foreigners with visitor’s visas (with visa less than two years) do not require a NIN. Operators will capture the following on their records; – International passport bio-data page and visa page.

     

    “Foreigners with diplomatic visas (including family diplomatic visas) will also require a NIN for their personal telephone lines if they are staying in Nigeria for two or more years.

     

     “Those staying less than two years will require the following for registration of their personal telephone lines: international passport bio-data page and letter from embassy indicating that their stay is for less than two years.

     

    “For embassies and diplomatic missions: The data page containing the passport number of the diplomatic passport of the Head of Mission/Embassy along with a Letter of Request signed by the ambassador or its equivalent for registration of the official telephone lines of the embassy /mission in Nigeria shall be submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for verification and confirmation and registration of the SIMs;  SIM cards of the diplomatic missions are to be linked with a Corporate Diplomatic Identification Number, which will be unique to each diplomatic mission.

     

    “Each mission will also be responsible for managing the lines and allocating them internally.”

     

    It added that the Head of Mission would serve as the Telecom Master or Point of Contact for the Mission.

  • Airtel Records $3.91bn Revenue In Q1 of 2021

    Airtel Records $3.91bn Revenue In Q1 of 2021

     

    Airtel Africa Plc has reported a 14.2 percent growth in income to $3.91bn in the first quarter of 2021.

     

    The company in its financial statement released recently, said it recorded revenue growth across all its regions: Nigeria by 21.9 per cent; East Africa by 23.5 per cent and Francophone Africa by 10 per cent.

     

    Revenues for voice were up by 11 per cent, data was up 31.2 per cent and mobile money was up 35.5 per cent.

     

    Chief executive officer, Airtel Africa Plc, Raghunath Mandava in a statement, said: “In these challenging times, I want to say a huge thank you to all our employees, our business partners, and governments and regulators who have supported us, and in turn facilitated our continued support to the economies and communities we serve.”

     

    “Our performance has been strong, with reported growth of 13.6 per cent in underlying revenue and 18.3 per cent in underlying EBITDA, and constant currency growth of 19.4 per cent and 25.2 per cent respectively.”

     

    “Contributions to this growth came across all regions, with particular improvement in Francophone Africa, and across all our major services, with mobile money, data and voice each posting double-digit revenue growth.”

     

    “Our customer base also grew strongly for most of the year with new customer registration requirements in Nigeria stemming from our onboarding of new customers in the final quarter, and these restrictions were lifted in the second half of April.”

     

    The company’s operating profit increased by 24.2 per cent to $1.12bn in reported currency and by 32.8 per cent in constant currency. Free cash flow was up by 42.8 per cent to $647m on the prior year.

     

    The company grew its customer base by 6.9 per cent to 118.2 million, with increased penetration across mobile data (customer base up 14.5 per cent) and mobile money services (customer base up 18.5 per cent).

     

    However, it witnessed slowdown in customer base growth due to new SIM registration regulations in Nigeria.

  • Surendran Replaces Ogunsanya As Managing Director/CEO Of Airtel Nigeria

    Surendran Replaces Ogunsanya As Managing Director/CEO Of Airtel Nigeria

     

    Airtel Networks Limited (Nigeria), a subsidiary of Airtel Africa plc, has announced the appointment of C. Surendran as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD and CEO) of Airtel Nigeria with effect from 1 August 2021.

     

    In addition, Mr. Surendran will be appointed to the Executive Committee (ExCo) as Regional Operating Director, reporting to the CEO of Airtel Africa plc, and onto the Board of Airtel Networks (Nigeria) Limited.

     

    Mr. Surendran replaces Mr. Olusegun (Segun) Ogunsanya.  Mr. Olusegun (Segun) Ogunsanya will become Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Airtel Africa plc with effect from 1 October 2021, with a transition period from 1 August 2021.

     

    Mr. Surendran has been with Bharti Airtel since 2003 and has contributed immensely in various roles across customer experience, sales and business operations.

     

    According to a statement by the telco, in his most recent role as CEO Karnataka, which is the largest circle in Airtel India with over $1bn in revenue, Mr. Surendran delivered exceptional performance with significant movement in Revenue Market Share (RMS) over last few years, currently at 54%.

     

    Surendran has over 30 years of business experience, including 15 years at Xerox.

     

    He will transition into his new role from 1 June 2021 and spend the time onboarding into the business until 31 July 2021.

  • MTN Loses 5 Million Subscribers, Records $385.1bn Revenue In Q1 2021

    MTN Loses 5 Million Subscribers, Records $385.1bn Revenue In Q1 2021

     

    Telecom provider, MTN has recorded a service revenue growth by 17.2% YoY to N385.1 billion during the first quarter of 2021. This is up 5.4% from the N365.2bn of the previous quarter.

     

    Karl Toriola, MTN CEO announced: “We made good progress in the first quarter of 2021 despite the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

     

    As revealed in its reports the tremendous feat can be credited to the huge growth of data and voice revenue despite the impact of the pandemic and a decline in subscribers.

     

    The report further reveals that voice revenue, which generated 63% of the total sum, grew by 8.0% from N226.5Bn to N244.6Bn. This growth was supported by the 8.7% increase in traffic and customer value management initiatives. Data revenue saw even higher growth. The report shows that it maintained the positive momentum from Q4 2020, rising by 42.6% YoY to N105.6Bn.

     

    Expenses rose by 14.8% to N180.7bn, mainly driven by a 19.2% increase in operating expenses arising from an accelerated site rollout and the effects of Naira depreciation on lease rental costs.

     

    Similarly, Capital expenditure in the quarter was N89.9 billion, up 19.3% mainly due to site rollouts, while free cash flow increased by 18.9% to N114.7 billion.

     

    MTN explained that the effect of the SIM ban on voice revenue was offset by increased usage by active SIMs in its base and migration to a higher quality of experience.

     

    This was fueled by increased usage, traffic, the boost in 4G penetration and increased network capacity following the acquisition and activation of an additional 800MHz spectrum in March 2021.

     

    Insights from the report show that that data traffic increased by 86.7% with the addition of the 800MHz spectrum enhancing output by 79%.

     

    With the huge revenue MTN raked during the quarter, its profit should have been higher than the N73.7 bn reported. The dropped was caused by the double-digit growth in expenses.

     

    The telco however said the overall increase in expenses was partly mitigated by the comparatively moderate growth of 7.8% in the cost of sales following the suspension of new SIM sales and activations.

     

    Additionally, the report also shows that Mobile subscribers declined by 5 million to 71.5 million while Active data users declined marginally by 71,000 to 32.5 million.

     

    According to the Telco giant, the 4-month NCC ban on new SIM sales and registration effectively curtailed subscriber growth. During the ban, MTN lost a total of 9.2 million subscribers – representing 75% of the 12.2m subscribers it added in the entire 2020.

  • Ogunsanya Appointed Airtel Africa CEO

    Ogunsanya Appointed Airtel Africa CEO

     

    Airtel Africa plc, a leading provider of telecommunications and mobile money services, with a presence in 14 countries across Africa, has announced Olusegun Ogunsanya, Managing Director and CEO Nigeria to succeed Raghunath Mandava, as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer following Mandava’s informing the Board of his intention to retire. 

     

    Ogunsanya will join the Board of Airtel Africa plc with effect from 1 October 2021. 

     

    Ogunsanya joined Airtel Africa in 2012 as Managing Director and CEO Nigeria and has been responsible for the overall management of our operations in Nigeria, our largest market in Africa. 

     

    Segun has more than 25 years’ business management experience in banking, consumer goods and telecoms.

     

    Before joining Airtel in 2012, Segun held leadership roles at Coca-Cola in Ghana, Nigeria, and Kenya (as MD and CEO).

     

     He has also been the Managing Director of Nigerian Bottling Company Ltd (Coca-Cola Hellenic owned) and Group head of retail banking operations at Ecobank Transnational Inc, covering 28 countries in Africa. He is an electronics engineer and also a chartered accountant.

     

    Raghu Mandava will be retiring as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, as a Director of Airtel Africa plc and as a member of the Market Disclosure Committee on 30 September 2021.

     

    A statement by the telecom firm stated that arrangements have been made to ensure a smooth transition of responsibilities.

     

    “Following his cessation of employment at Airtel Africa, Mr. Mandava will be available to advise the Chairman, the Airtel Africa Board and the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer for a 9-month period.”

     

    An announcement naming Segun Ogunsanya’s successor as Managing Director and CEO Nigeria is expected to be made soon.

     

    Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman said: “We are delighted to appoint Segun Ogunsanya as the Group’s next Chief Executive Officer.  He has displayed significant drive and energy in turning around the Nigeria business by focusing on network modernisation, distribution, and operational efficiency. It is this commitment, together with his industry experience, strategic vision, constant customer focus and proven record of delivery that will enable him to continue to deliver our strategic objectives and to lead the Group in the next stages of its development.”

     

    “On behalf of the Board I would like to thank Raghu Mandava for being instrumental in successfully leading and transforming Airtel Africa into a powerhouse telecommunications and mobile money company. Throughout that time, Raghu has worked tirelessly first to repair and then to strengthen Airtel Africa’s business and to champion our stakeholders. As we look forward to Segun assuming his new role in October 2021, we do so from a position of great strength as a result of Raghu’s highly effective stewardship. Raghu will retire from the Board with our very best wishes and sincere appreciation for everything he has achieved.”

     

    Raghu Mandava said: “I am thankful to Airtel Africa for providing me and my team the opportunity to transform the business and fulfil our responsibility to the countries in which we operate. It has been a privilege to serve in the African continent and I cherish my time here. Airtel Africa is a remarkable business with fantastic people. Having been at Bharti Airtel for 13 years and at Airtel Africa for 5 years as Chief Executive Officer, I feel now is the right time to take a sabbatical.

     

    “The last five years have been an exhilarating journey where we have been able to turnaround and transform the business into a strong high growth and profitable company. We have been able to build the business with our unique management and problem solving approach to bring in substantial performance improvement. I am very proud of what we have achieved over the past 5 years in Africa, and I look forward to seeing the Company make even greater progress over the coming years.”

     

    Segun Ogunsanya said: “Having been part of the Airtel Africa journey for the past nine years, I am looking forward to taking up the role of Chief Executive Officer. On a personal note, as an African, I feel honoured to have the opportunity to lead a Group that continues to make a difference to millions of people, bridge the digital divide and expand financial inclusion. This is an exciting opportunity to position Airtel Africa for further success in a dynamic continent full of potential. I look forward to building on the achievements of the last five years during Raghu’s leadership.”

     

    There are no additional matters requiring disclosure under Rule 9.6.13 of the UK Listing Rules.

     

  • Rudman, Other Stakeholders to Brainstorm on Cloud Hosting Services/Data at NITRA Tech Forum 2021

    Rudman, Other Stakeholders to Brainstorm on Cloud Hosting Services/Data at NITRA Tech Forum 2021

     

    Mr. Muhammed Rudman, Chief Executive Officer, Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN), Nigeria’s first and only neutral IXP, will chair NITRA TECHNOLOGY FORUM 2021 which is slated to hold on Thursday, May 27, 2021 at the Oriental Hotel, Lagos.

     

    The event will gather industry stakeholders in the Cloud hosting services and Data Center to discuss issues around the growth of data hosting, preservation and utilisation in the country.

     

    The NITRA TECHNOLOGY FORUM with its Theme: Achieving 30% Growth In Local Cloud Hosting By 2024, will also discuss challenges and solutions to factors mitigating against effective domiciliation of our locally-generated data.

     

    According to the organisers, the choice of Mr. Rudman to chair this edition was borne out of his passion and contribution to the growth of local content in the industry and everything data.

     

    Rudman is also the current President of NiRA, the .ng registry, as well as the DNS Administrator contact for Nigeria. He is a member of ccNSO, and has worked in a technical capacity with many Nigerian Internet Service Providers.

     

    According to the Chairman of NITRA, Mr. Chike Onwuegbuchi, over the years, Nigeria has been grappling with the need to secure the country’s data and further boost local content in all sectors of the economy, and key stakeholders are worried and concerned about how the sector is faring in this area, and how it can achieve local hosting of our sensitive data. Growth should be inside-out.

     

    The Covid-19 pandemic has also presented an eye-opener to many companies on the need to fortify their data and cloud architecture.

     

    “Specifically, the Forum will offer Cloud service companies, data infrastructure companies and other stakeholders, opportunities to reach out to their target market with solutions that addresses their challenges and needs.

     

    Through the Forum, stakeholders will be able to discuss current challenges affecting Cloud businesses, policies that should facilitate growth and solutions to the challenges identified,” Onwuegbuchi said.

     

    The world increasingly exploits information technology for innovative services and competitive advantage, the data centre is playing a rapidly expanding role in job creation and growth of cloud hosting services in the country as well as the overall economic recovery.

     

    As an aspiring digital economy, Nigeria has also witnessed significant investments in data centres being established in the country. And it has often been argued that the availability of world class Data centres in Nigeria is critical infrastructure required for the implementation of the country’s Broadband initiatives, hence the convergence of the forum by NITRA, the umbrella association for ICT journalists in Nigeria and watchdog to the growth and development of the industry.

  • FG Finally Bows To ATCIS’ Pressure, Lifts Ban On Activation of New SIMs

    FG Finally Bows To ATCIS’ Pressure, Lifts Ban On Activation of New SIMs

     

    In line with the persistent agitations by the Association of Telephone, Cable and Internet Subscribers, ATCIS, the Federal Government has lifted the ban on new Subscribers Identification Module (SIMs) card registration, as it fixed Monday, April 19, 2021 as the effective date for implementation.

     

    The latest development was contained in revised National Digital Identity Policy for SIM Card Registration approved by President Muhammadu Buhari.

     

    The government however placed NIN registration as mandatory for registering new SIM cards.

     

    A statement by Technical Assistant (Information Technology) to Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Femi Adeluyi, reads in part: “The implementation of the Policy will commence on Monday, 19th of April 2021.

     

    “The issuance of New SIMs and other suspended activities will resume on the same date, as long as verification is done and the guidelines are fully adhered to.

     

    “The Minister has also directed NCC and NIMC to ensure that the provisions of the Policy are strictly followed by all operators and subscribers.

     

    “The Policy includes Guidelines on New SIM Acquisition and Activation, SIM Replacement, New SIM Activation for Corporates and Internet-of-Things/Machine-to-Machine (IoT/M2M), amongst others.

     

     “The possession of a National Identity number will be a prerequisite for each of these categories. For the Corporate registration, institutions will be required to appoint a Telecoms Master (at the minimum of an Executive Management level) to provide the operational Primary NIN representation.

     

    “The Telecoms Master will also be responsible for ensuring that the users provide their NINs to serve as a Secondary NIN.

     

    “For IoT/M2M activations, SIM security protocols would be implemented on the SIM profile to ensure that SIMs can only be used for point to point data services specific to the URL they are working with. All other services will be barred.”

     

    Reacting to the development, the ATCIS National President, Hon Sina Bilesanmi lauded the federal government for listening to the voices of the subscribers by ending the ban which he said would also go a long way in ending the suffering of Nigerian youths.

     

    The association, he noted, had written several memos to the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy on the need to reverse the ban as the suspension of new SIM cards registration had in the last four months rendered over two million youths jobless across the country thereby worsening the security challenges the government was trying to address.

     

    While reiterating that more than 10 billion in revenues have been lost by the telecoms partners in last four months, Bilesanmi noted that over 1 billion in VAT and withholding tax has also been lost by the Federal Government due to the policy.

     

    Specifically, several Nigerian citizens have been subjected to hardship due to miscalculated policies of the NCC as majority of the telecoms business partners, staff and the agents are within the age bracket 20 to 40 years, while income in the value chain is determined by the number of activations /SIM registration carried out within every month, hence leaving them jobless for too long.

    .

    The ATCIS President also reiterated his call on the Federal Government especially the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy to always invite the association to meetings before critical decisions are taken.

     

    “It is very important for the minister to always call us to meetings. We are the representatives of the Nigerian subscribers. Our inputs are also critical to the development of the ministry especially in terms of digital economy,” Bilesanmi said.

     

    Meanwhile, the ATCIS President said due to the latest development whereby the registration and activation of new SIM cards is expected to commence on Monday, April 19, 2021, the association’s Success Stories Press Conference earlier scheduled to hold on same day in Lagos, has been postponed.  

     

    According to him, the ATCIS Success Stories Press Conference would now hold on Monday May 3, 2021.

     

    The ATCIS is the umbrella body of telephone, cable and internet subscribers in Nigeria cutting across the six geographical areas of the nation.

     

    Speaking on determination of the association to continue speaking and fighting for the rights of Nigerian telephone and cable subscribers, Bilesanmi said over the years, in its sustained effort in protecting the interest and right of telecoms subscribers in Nigeria, ATCIS has spent about N367million since 2014 till 31st January, 2021which has basically been on self-sponsored by members without government agency like NCC, NBC and NIMC input.

     

    The association has made over 630 newspaper publications, both local and international as well as online news publication, Radio and National Television Station Interviews with about 95 landmark achievements so far.

     

  • ATCIS, Subscribers Frown At New USSD Charge, Threaten To Go To Court

    ATCIS, Subscribers Frown At New USSD Charge, Threaten To Go To Court

     

    Nigerian subscribers have expressed dissatisfaction with the new Unstructured Supplementary Service Data service charge of N6.98 as they have threatened to take legal action as soon as the new USSD service charge takes effect.

     

    The Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian Communications Commission had announced that USSD services for financial transactions would be charged at a flat rate fee of N6.98 per transaction.

     

    This followed threats by the Mobile Network Operators to withdraw the USSD services from the banks due to an outstanding debt of over N42bn.

     

    The Association of Telephone, Cable TV and Internet Subscribers, ATCIS has expressed displeasure over the new USSD service charge.

     

    The ATCIS National President, Sina Bilesanmi, said the charge was unacceptable and must be rejected by every bank account holder.

     

    “It is exploitative and this dictatorial act must stop forthwith. I am amazed that the same CBN that was initially opposed to the unjustified increase in USSD service charge in 2019 now made the announcement of the hike,” Bilesanmi said.

     

    The ATCIS president called for the immediate reversal of the USSD service charge.

     

    “If the Central Bank of Nigeria and telecommunication companies did not revert to the previous rate, we shall institute a legal action against them,” he added.

     

    Speaking in the same vein, the President, National Association of Telecoms Subscribers of Nigeria, Deolu Ogunbanjo, also described the charge as a step back from financial inclusion.

     

    According to him, it was unacceptable that the quarrel between the banks and the telecom operators was resolved by taxing subscribers

     

    He said the banks should have rather been charged.

     

    “Everything in telecoms that’s meant to put smiling faces on subscriber faces is now being eroded. Why should they increase the USSD transaction fee? It’s appalling and condemnable, and we’ll take it up with them,” Ogunbajo said.

     

    He stated that the group would take the banks to court if the charge gets implemented.

     

    Analysing the N6.98 fee’s impact on financial inclusion, financial expert, Tunji Andrews, said the fee would be a major deterrent to using the channel.

     

    He noted that though the fee structure was cheaper on the average, it was a real time cost which meant customers would see it as a standalone debit.

     

     “This may not go down too well with the majority who use the service. It is unlikely to increase the use of the USSD channels as it realistically does not hold a drastic change for users. It can however reduce the use of USSD, if not properly managed,” he said.

     

    Andrews was also of the opinion that banks should have borne the charge instead of the subscribers.

     

    He stated that, “It is still a banking transaction, enabled by the USSD service. I’m sure telcos would like to run a banking transaction similar to M-Pesa (mobile money transfer service in Kenya) but ours is a bank led environment that puts the power and most of the profit in the hands of the banks.

     

    “The banks should have carried the fee, especially if the goal is financial inclusion. USSD is meant to be a sunk cost, an enabler to bringing more of those without smartphones into the fold.”

     

    However,  the National Coordinator, Alliance for Affordable Internet, Olusola Teniola said the N6.98 USSD charge is a fair fee and could be viewed as a lower cost of using the USSD platform to interact with financial services.

     

    Teniola stated, “I think this is just a way forward. It would improve the financial inclusion that the country needs to move it from its current position to 80 per cent financial inclusion.”

     

    “We always were seeking an amicable resolution to the debts that are outstanding

     

    And I believe that’s certain to happen now that there has been an intervention by the minister.”

  • Banks Lift Blockage of USSD Transactions on MTN

    Banks Lift Blockage of USSD Transactions on MTN

     

    Commercial banks have reconnected MTN customers earlier denied access to the unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) payment channels.

     

    In a letter seen by TheCable, on Sunday, Karl Toriola, Managing Director And Chief Executive Officer of MTN Nigeria, announced a decision to revert discount offered to banks on airtime sales to 4.5 percent commission.

     

    The mobile network operator (MNO) had reduced banks’ commission from an average of 3.5 percent to 2.5 percent, this led to a disagreement between MTN and commercial banks.

     

    “Our virtual meeting between yourself (Wigwe) and Segun Agbaje (MD of GTBank) on the one hand and myself (Toriola) and Modupe Kadri (chief financial officer of MTN Nigeria) on the other refers,” the letter read.

     

    “In an attempt to resolve the current USSD recharge impasse, given the interventions from our regulators, we hereby agree The Banks revert to the status quo of 4.5% commission.

     

    “However, the banks and MTN Communications Nigeria Plc, shall sit to agree on various options that will result in the reduction in the costs on 6th of April 2021.”

     

    Commercial banks had asked MTN to reverse its action to the old commission or would block MTN airtime recharge services in both mobile banking applications and unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) payment channels.

     

    Due to MTN’s refusal to revert back the commission percentage, commercial banks except Zenith Bank, which is connected directly to the MNO, denied customers access to the USSD platform, leaving many subscribers stranded and frustrated as they were informed to recharge their lines with physical cards.

     

    On Friday, Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, had said the issue encountered by MTN users through the USSD channel will be resolved soon.

     

    On Saturday, MTN had offered alternative channels for its subscribers to use in recharging their lines such as dialling *904# and *606#, and other electronic payment platforms.

  • Nigerians Without NIN Risk Going To Jail — Pantami

    Nigerians Without NIN Risk Going To Jail — Pantami

     

    The minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, says Nigerians involved in business transactions without a national identification number (NIN) risk jail term or fine.

     

    He said this while delivering an address at a press briefing in Abuja on Thursday.

     

    Pantami warned that those yet to obtain their NIN are violating a section of the NIMC Act of 2007, noting that 51 million Nigerians have registered for their national identification number (NIN).

     

    He referenced section 27 of act which establishes NIN as a prerequisite for several registrations and transactions in Nigeria.

     

    According to him, while obtaining a SIM card maybe optional, NIN is mandatory as it is a criminal offense in Nigeria to carry out business activities without it.

     

    “Based on the requirement by law each and every citizen and legal resident must obtain his/her national identification number, which is being coordinated by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC). It’s a requirement by law but many citizens ignore it,” he said.

     

    “For you to open a bank account without national identity number is an offence. For you to pay tax is an offence, for you to collect pension is an offence, for you to enjoy any government service, without having national identity number is an offence.

     

    “No country will be successful in education, health, budget planning or national planning without database of its citizens in place.

     

    “The NIMC Act clause 27 states that you need the NIN for opening bank account, for insurance, land transactions, voters registration, drivers licenses. So, it is an offense to transact any business activity without first having your NIN.

     

    “Section 29 says if you do any of these in 27, without obtain National Identity Number you have committed a crime that will lead to fines or imprisonment, or both of them.”

     

    WHAT DOES THE NIMC ACT SAYS?

     

    The NIMC Act of 2007 acknowledges the importance of NIN in engaging in business transactions.

     

    Section 27 of the act provides for the mandatory use of NIN.

     

    It states that NIN is needed for registration and issuance of passport, opening of bak accounts, purchase of insurance policies, transfer and registration of land, voter’s registration, tax payment, among others.

     

    It is also required for “any other transaction which the Commission may so prescribe and list in the Federal Government Gazette”.

     

    “Any authority or organisation to which a person applies to carry out any transaction listed under subsection (I) of this section shall request such person to produce his Multipurpose Identity Card or National Identification Number,” the act reads.

     

    For defaulters, section 29 of the same act, notes that there is a penalty for not owning a NIN before engaging in transactions or registrations.

     

    The section states that an individual who violates section 27 will get a jail sentence of at least six months or a minimum of N50,000 fine.

     

    “Any person who carries out or permits the carrying out of any transaction specified in section 27 of this Act without a National Identification Number commits an offence and shall,” it reads.

     

    “Where the offence is committed by a registered individual, be liable on conviction to a fine of not less than N50,000.00 or imprisonment for a term not less than 6 months or to both such fine and imprisonment.

     

    “Where the offence is committed by a body corporate, be liable on conviction to a fine of not less than N1,000,000.00 and in addition, the Chief Executive or the line manager or other similar officer of the body corporate, or any other person purporting to act in any such capacity shall be deemed guilty of that offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine of N1,000,000.00 each.”