Biometric data: Jonathan orders agencies to stop multiple registration

President Goodluck Jonathan has put a stop to the multiplicity government agencies requiring identity verification or involved in data capturing activities.

The President ordered that such agencies should align their data requirements with the National Identity Management Commission infrastructure by December 31, 2014.

He also gave the NIMC till the same date to ensure that all eligible persons as provided for in Section 16 of the NIMC Act 23 of 2007 were enrolled into the National Identity Database.

Jonathan gave this order at the inauguration of the enrollment exercise for the issuance of the National Identification Number held inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

In recent times, several agencies of government have required Nigerians to submit to biometric data capturing, generating concerns among members of the public as regards the time, the money and energy wasted in such excersises.T

here has been growing concerns among Nigerians over the duplication of data capturing activities by government agencies including the Federal Road Safety Commission, Nigeria Police, Nigeria Immigration Service and Nigeria Population Commission.

The Biometric Central Motor Registration introduced by the Nigeria Police recently had attracted criticism with many describing it as unnecessary.

The Police said the digital biometric registration which intends to capture the data of vehicles and their owners would be at a cost to members of the public.

But Jonathan said his directive for the alignment of the data capturing activities was aimed at streamlining biometrically-linked databases and optimising scarce resources.

He said apart from being unwieldy, the cost of operating multiple discordant databases and infrastructure was unsustainable.

Jonathan said his government could not afford the continued proliferation of data capture activities because it neither grant any advantage in efficiency nor make good economic sense.

He said, 'Nigeria cannot be an exception to the global trend towards identity management and centralised national identity database. Already, there is a growing quest for specific databases and identity verification by several government institutions and private sector organisations in our country.

'Aside from being unwieldy, the cost of operating multiple discordant databases and infrastructure is unsustainable.  Government cannot afford the continued proliferation of data capture activities. The proliferation does not grant any advantage in efficiency, neither does it make good economic sense.

'The growing identity verification needs, therefore, calls for harmonisation, and integration of identity databases and the development of a universal service infrastructure.

'To achieve this goal, the National Identity Management Commission should ensure that by December 31, 2014 all persons eligible for registration as provided for in Section 16 of the NIMC Act No. 23, of 2007 are enrolled into the National Identity Database.

'By this same date, all government agencies requiring identity verification and authentication services or involved in data capture activities must align their activities with a view to switching over to the NIMC infrastructure.'