The President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has reaffirmed the National Assembly’s commitment to fostering a legislative environment that prioritizes data-driven governance and reinforces national security measures.
According to the Senate President, accurate and comprehensive vital registration is the very DNA of a Sovereign State, insisting that it is a tool that empowers the government to plan and allocate resources effectively from schools and hospitals, to Infrastructure, and most importantly, provide a definite Legal identity for every Citizen.
Senator Akpabio spoke on Monday while declaring open a one day public hearing on a bill for an act to repeal the births, deaths, etc (compulsory registration act) and to enact the compulsory civil registration 2025 to provide for electronic civil registration system and for other related matters.
The bill sponsored by Senator Victor Umeh (Anambra Central); Akpabio emphasised that a seamless, efficient and reliable system of registering births, deaths, marriages, and divorces is a non-negotiable prerequisite for a Credible National Identity Card System, which is Pivotal to Nigeria’s collective security.
Akpabio, who was represented by Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Peter Nwebonyi recognized the inherent Challenges in enforcing the Act across Nigeria’s diverse Landscape.
He said “this hearing must, therefore, be a platform to dissect the current framework, address the structure of the Registrar-General’s office and state chief registrars, and empowering the grassroots-level registrars”.
Earlier, chairman of the Senate committee on National Identity Card and National Population, Senator Victor Umeh bemoaned that Nigeria has operated for decades under an outdated Civil Registration Framework that cannot support Modern Development Needs.
He said “we have relied on Estimates, Projections, and Fragmented Identity Systems, Challenging the accuracy of Planning across: Education, Health, National Security, Social Welfare, Electoral Boundaries, Economic Strategy, and Resource Allocation”.
He explained that the World has moved toward Digital and International Civil Registration Systems, saying if Nigeria must compete globally and plan effectively, “we must transit from Paper-Based Inconsistent Records to a fully Electronic, and Integrated Platforms”.
Highlighting the objectives of the bill, Senator Umeh said it will ensure that every Health Institutions Register the earliest Population Events, Births, and Deaths, ensure that Security Agencies support Verification, Enforcement, and National Identity Integrity, Ensure MDAs interoperability and Data-sharing Frameworks.
Others include to ensure that Religious and Community Organizations help Public awareness and Compliance, Ensure Development Partners like UNICEF provide Technical Capacity and Global Guidance and Ensure Civil Society Accountability, Inclusion, and Public Trust.
Senator Umeh however stressed that a Credible, Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics is not just a Technical Necessity, but National Imperative.
