NCC has ordered telcos to immediately reactivate phone lines affected by NIN/SIM erification Issues, according to a statement signed today by Mr Reuben Muoka, Director Public Affairs.
It added that over the weekend many telecom subscribers/consumers were unable to access their phone lines because of the inability of many telecom consumers to verify their National Identification Numbers (NINs) with their Subscriber Identification Modules (SIMs). This meant that their
numbers were blocked by their telecom service providers in keeping with
laws and policies of the NIN-SIM linkage.
Telecoms consumers and the public will recall the compulsory linkage of
NIN with SIM which began in December 2020 when the government
directed telecommunication companies to bar unregistered SIM cards and
SIMs that were not linked to NIN.
Since December 2023, the Commission has since reviewed the deadline a
few times; April 15, 2024 was set as the deadline for the full network
barring of subscribers with four or fewer SIMs that had unverified NIN
details. This deadline was then reviewed to July 31, 2024, to give
consumers more time to ensure their submitted NIN details are properly
verified. Despite these extensions, many phone lines are yet to be linked
with verified NINs.
The objectives of this exercise by the Federal Government of Nigeria
include enhancing national security and ensuring the national SIM
ownership database is accurate. The NIN-SIM linkage policy aids in
verifying and protecting users’ identities while also providing a critical
infrastructure that assures access to the benefits of a robust digital
economy for the citizenry.
The consumer is our priority, therefore, considering the challenges the
blockages have caused, the Commission has directed all operators to reactivate all lines that were disconnected over the weekend in view of the
short time available for consumers to undertake the verification of their
NINs with their SIMs. Reactivated consumers are to note that this is for
a limited period to allow them to properly link their NIN to their SIM.
Members of the public who are yet to verify their SIMs are encouraged to
do so as soon as possible to maintain access to their lines.
