Posted by Chinenye on Thu 16th Jul, 2026 - tori.ng
Nigeria has introduced a new digital platform aimed at changing how citizens register vital life events.
(NPC. Photo Credit: Daiy Trust)
The National Population Commission, NPC, has rolled out an online birth and death registration platform under its Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics, E-CRVS, system.
Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, NPC Chairman, Dr Aminu Yusuf, said the platform, which went live on July 1, 2026, is now accessible across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
He said the initiative is aimed at modernising civil registration processes, generating accurate population data for national planning, and improving citizens' access to legal identity.
According to him, Nigeria records around five million births each year, yet a significant number of births and deaths still go unregistered.
He noted that birth registration coverage currently stands at about 57 percent nationwide, while death registration remains below 20 percent, adding that these gaps deny many Nigerians legal identity and hamper the availability of reliable data for effective planning.
Yusuf disclosed that the commission has set up 4,011 registration centres spread across the country's 774 local government areas, with plans to expand this to about 8,000 centres to widen access.
He explained that the new digital platform provides round-the-clock online access, quicker registration, digital certificate issuance where applicable, reduced paperwork, automated data validation, and stronger database security, while also being designed to integrate with Nigeria's broader digital identity framework.
To strengthen access at the grassroots level, he said the commission has partnered with the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, ALGON, the National Identity Management Commission, NIMC, UNICEF, and Bankforte Technologies Limited to decentralise birth registration services.
He added that the commission had also reviewed fees for specialised services such as record modification, certificate reissuance, and verification requests to help sustain the platform, noting that birth registration and birth notification services remain heavily subsidised in keeping with the commission's push for universal registration.
Yusuf called on state governments, local councils, health institutions, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations, and the media to support ongoing efforts to ensure that every birth and death in Nigeria is promptly registered.