Katsina State and the National Identity Management Commission have agreed to establish a technical working group to develop a framework for integrating the state’s identity management system with Nigeria’s national identity architecture. Governor Dikko Umaru Radda announced the proposed collaboration following a meeting with NIMC Director-General Abisoye Coker-Odusote in Abuja. The working group is expected to review existing systems, identify opportunities for integration and prepare a draft memorandum of understanding within eight weeks, providing a defined next step for the proposed partnership.
Katsina State Governor Dikko Umaru Radda has sought a deeper partnership with the National Identity Management Commission to improve identity registration and connect the state’s identity management system with the national identity architecture. The governor made the request during a courtesy visit to NIMC Director-General and Chief Executive Officer Abisoye Coker-Odusote in Abuja. The proposed collaboration is intended to strengthen the state’s ability to maintain useful identity data and coordinate its systems with national infrastructure. An immediate outcome of the meeting was an agreement to establish a technical working group to develop the framework for cooperation and prepare a draft memorandum of understanding. The agreement represents a preparatory step; it does not establish that technical integration has already been completed or that the two systems are operationally connected.
Radda described reliable identity information as an essential foundation for effective governance, evidence-based planning, social protection, economic empowerment and public service delivery. He said the state was working to consolidate its identity management efforts into a more robust platform capable of helping government understand population needs, identify vulnerable communities and direct development programmes to intended beneficiaries. Accurate identity records can support these functions when they are current, sufficiently inclusive and appropriately governed. The announcement did not, however, provide a technical description of Katsina’s existing identity platform, the number of records it contains, its level of coverage or the specific systems proposed for integration. Those details are among the issues that the technical process would need to establish.
The governor raised concern that a significant proportion of residents, particularly people in rural and hard-to-reach areas, had yet to be captured in the national identity system. He called for a coordinated approach to accelerating registration and addressing the gaps. The proposed areas for cooperation include expanding registration points, improving public awareness, strengthening coordination with local structures and using technology to make registration more accessible. The announcement did not specify the number of unregistered residents, identify priority local government areas or set a registration target. Those baselines would be important for measuring whether future outreach reaches underserved communities and whether the proposed partnership reduces existing coverage disparities.
Coker-Odusote welcomed the state government’s initiative and reaffirmed NIMC’s commitment to working with Katsina to expand identity coverage and build an integrated and inclusive system. She said the commission would provide the technical support required to pursue the objectives of the collaboration. The agreed working group is expected to include representatives of NIMC’s Directorate of Identity Management, the state lead consultant, the Director-General of the Katsina Directorate of Information and Communication Technology, the state Statistician-General and the Executive Secretary of the Katsina State Development Management Board. This membership brings together identity administration, digital systems and statistical planning functions, although the announcement did not specify the group’s chair, meeting schedule or detailed terms of reference.
The working group is expected to review the existing identity architecture, identify areas for integration and improvement, and develop a clear cooperation framework within eight weeks. That work is intended to lead to the review and signing of a memorandum of understanding between the parties. The governor was accompanied at the meeting by Chief of Staff Abdulkadir Mamman Nasir, the Special Adviser on Inter-governmental Relations, the state lead consultant and the Executive Secretary of the Katsina State Development Management Board. Radda reiterated his commitment to data-driven and people-centred governance, including the aim of ensuring that citizens are not excluded from development programmes because of information gaps. The next stated milestone is the working group’s framework and draft agreement; no final integration date or completed registration target was announced.