By Zaharaddeen Ishaq Abubakar, Katsina Times

The National Population Commission (NPC) has commenced the full digital registration of births and deaths across Nigeria, as part of efforts to modernise the country’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) system.

The Federal Commissioner representing Katsina State on the commission, Prof. Sadik Isah Radda, disclosed this on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, during his first interaction with journalists since his appointment, held at the NPC office in Katsina.

Prof. Radda said the digital registration was being implemented through the VitalReg platform under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (ECRVS) system and became operational nationwide from July 1, 2026.

He said the initiative was designed to improve the registration of births and deaths, strengthen data integrity and provide reliable demographic statistics for national planning and development.

According to him, the transition from paper-based to electronic registration represents a major reform in Nigeria’s civil registration system.

“We are here today to address quite a number of issues and to ensure that we are in line with the aspirations of the National Population Commission at the headquarters,” he said.

Prof. Radda said Katsina State had made significant progress in transitioning from manual to digital registration of births and deaths, but stressed the need to consolidate the gains.

He urged journalists to partner with the commission by educating members of the public about the new system and encouraging citizens to register births and deaths promptly.

The commissioner also extended his appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for appointing him to the commission and to Katsina State Governor for supporting his appointment.

He further acknowledged the contributions of political leaders, ministers from Katsina State, members of the National Assembly and other stakeholders who supported his appointment.

Prof. Radda pledged to protect the interests of Katsina State while discharging his responsibilities at the NPC with dedication, dignity and integrity.

He also described the media as an important partner in the commission’s efforts to improve civil registration and urged journalists to maintain a cordial relationship with the NPC.

Digital registration to improve access

In the address delivered on behalf of the NPC Chairman, Dr Amin Yusuf Talban Wushishi, Prof. Radda said the full digital registration of births and deaths was a major milestone in Nigeria’s CRVS system.

The chairman said the reform was aimed at ensuring that every birth and death occurring in Nigeria was captured through a modern, efficient and digitally enabled registration system.

He said the initiative built on the launch of the Paper-based Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (PE-CRVS) system and the inauguration of the National Committee on CRVS by President Tinubu on November 8, 2023.

According to him, Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, but millions of births and deaths remain unregistered.

He said birth registration coverage currently stood at 57 per cent nationwide, while death registration remained below 20 per cent.

The chairman said the gaps had deprived many Nigerians of legal identity and limited the availability of reliable demographic data required for effective planning and policymaking.

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To address the challenge, he said the commission had established 4,011 functional registration centres across the 774 local government areas and was working to increase the number to about 8,000.

The VitalReg platform, he explained, would provide faster and more efficient registration services, online access, digital certificate issuance where applicable, reduced paperwork and waiting time, and minimise unnecessary travel by citizens.

It would also improve data accuracy through automated validation and provide a more secure and credible national CRVS database.

The platform is designed to facilitate secure interoperability with other government institutions within Nigeria’s digital identity ecosystem, thereby supporting the country’s broader digital transformation and national identity management efforts.

NPC partners stakeholders on digital registration

The commission said successful implementation of the digital registration system would require sustained collaboration among government institutions, development partners and communities.

It said it had signed a partnership compact on the decentralisation and localisation of birth registration and legal identity with the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), UNICEF and its technical partner, Banks 40 Technologies Limited.

The partnership, according to the commission, would bring registration services closer to communities, improve accessibility and operational efficiency, strengthen grassroots participation and enhance the accuracy and inclusiveness of civil registration data.

The commission also said the VitalReg platform was being operated under a public-private partnership arrangement with Banks 40 Technologies Limited, a Nigerian information technology solutions provider.

The arrangement, it said, was intended to ensure continuous system availability, cybersecurity protection and regular technological improvements.

Review of fees for specialised services

The NPC said it had reviewed fees for some specialised administrative services, including record modifications, certificate reissuance, attestations and verification requests.

It explained that the services involved additional technical and administrative processing.

However, the commission stressed that the review was not intended to create barriers to accessing birth registration services.

It said birth registration and birth notification services remained highly subsidised in line with its commitment to achieving universal registration.

Call for prompt registration

The commission called on state governments, local government councils, healthcare institutions, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations and other stakeholders to support the digital transition.

It also urged Nigerians to ensure that births and deaths were registered promptly.

Prof. Radda said the NPC would continue to strengthen civil registration and vital statistics as part of its seven-point agenda, particularly in digital transformation, data quality, stakeholder engagement and improved service delivery.

He reaffirmed his commitment to working with the media in Katsina State and nationally to ensure that Nigerians were adequately informed about the new digital registration system.

The chairman, in the address, also commended NPC commissioners, management and staff across the country, as well as the media, for their contributions to strengthening civil registration in Nigeria.

He said the ultimate objective was to build a modern civil registration system capable of giving every Nigerian a legal identity from birth, providing credible demographic data and supporting evidence-based governance and national development.