The National Identity Management Commission says that it has settled all outstanding debts owed to Front-End Partners (FEPs) for National Identification Number (NIN) enrolment into its database.
NIMC disclosed this in a statement on Friday that was seen by Technology Times, where the identity management agency states that the partnership between the Commission and the Front-End Partners (FEPs) was established during the tenure of Isa Ali Pantami, former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy.
Under his leadership, NIMC says, this partnership played a critical role in the early stages of NIN enrolment, with the FEPs tasked with enroling Nigerians into the National Identification Number (NIN) database. However, the FEPs were only paid for one year of service, leading to an outstanding debt for the subsequent years.
According to NIMC, the debts were not part of the World Bank-funded enrolment project but resulted from a temporary arrangement approved by Pantami, the former Minister of Communication and Digital Economy.
NIMC: Debts were not part of World Bank-funded enrolments
“As part of the process of paying the outstanding money, all FEPs were subjected to a revalidation exercise to ensure they met internationally acceptable standards, adhered to compliance, and followed best ethical practices,” NIMC says.
With the approval of Engr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote, the Director-General/CEO of NIMC, the Commission sought the support of the Identity for Development (ID4D) initiative and the World Bank to facilitate the payment of funds following the evaluation process of the Front-End Partners (FEPs).
According to NIMC, the debts were not part of the World Bank-funded enrolment project but resulted from a temporary arrangement approved by Pantami, the former Minister of Communication and Digital Economy. The arrangement, which ran from 2021 to 2024, was designed as a short-term fix to quickly scale up NIN enrollment before the formal commencement of the ID4D/World Bank project, NIMC says.
In her address, the Director-General/CEO of NIMC expressed gratitude to the FEPs and NIMC stakeholders for their role in upholding the NIN database. She also commends the World Bank and ID4D for their support, reaffirming her commitment to ensuring that the Commission “will continue to provide the necessary support to build a credible, reliable, and world-class identity database.”
While speaking on the development, Philip M. Adekunle, MD/CEO of Knowledge Square Ltd, commends the NIMC for recognising and addressing the welfare of its enrolment partners. “This decisive action,” Adekunle says, “not only fosters trust and accountability but also strengthens the collaboration between NIMC and its partners.”
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