Ex-NIPOST boss urges FG to link NINs with verified addresses

Former Postmaster-General of the Federation, Bisi Adegbuyi, has proposed that Nigeria leverage its digital identity system to establish a comprehensive national address system. He argues that the current focus on the National Identification Number (NIN) is insufficient without a reliable way to determine individuals' physical locations.

Adegbuyi suggested that a recent Memorandum of Understanding between the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) and the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) should be expanded beyond a postcode framework. He envisions a digital addressing infrastructure that integrates identity, location, and public service delivery, stating, “Identity answers who. Location answers where. A functional digital society requires trusted answers to both questions.”

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Identity answers who. Location answers where. A functional digital society requires trusted answers to both questions.

He explained that combining identity records with location intelligence would significantly enhance government planning, improve service delivery, and allow institutions to verify addresses more accurately. Adegbuyi pointed to the millions of address records already collected during NIN enrollment as a foundation for this system, suggesting they could be standardized, geocoded, and verified to create a trusted national location database.

Adegbuyi also revealed that NIPOST had previously developed a Digital Addressing System and an Address Verification System during his tenure, which won a World Summit on the Information Society Prize in 2018. While discussions with NIMC for integration occurred, they were not fully realized. He proposed a model where NIPOST manages the postcode system and NIMC handles identity-linked address verification, emphasizing their complementary roles.

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A national identity system becomes considerably more useful when the identity holder can be connected, with measurable confidence, to a real-world location.