NAC ratifies framework to build Nigeria’s digitised modern addressing system

Nigeria is moving forward with plans to create a modern, digitized national addressing system, a move ratified by the National Addressing Council (NAC) on Monday. Vice President Kashim Shetima, who chaired the council meeting in Abuja, highlighted the initiative's alignment with the 'Renewed Hope Agenda.'

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Under the Renewed Hope Agenda, our duty is to build institutions that match the energy and mobility of our people. We must build a system that locate every community, support enterprise without barriers and stregthen government without compromising privacy.

Shetima stressed that the system is crucial for building institutions that match the nation's energy and mobility. "Our objective should be simple. for Nigerians to understand, wherever a citizen lives, wherever a business operates, wherever help is required, Nigeria should find the address," he stated. He envisions a system that supports enterprise without barriers and strengthens government functions while protecting privacy.

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Our objective should be simple. for Nigerians to understand, wherever a citizen lives, wherever a business operates, wherever help is required, Nigeria should find the address. This is the standard before us and I am confident that the council will deliver.

The vice president underscored the broader implications of a reliable addressing system, noting that a country unable to locate its people and businesses faces avoidable weaknesses in planning, commerce, security, and social protection. He emphasized that geography should never lead to invisibility, and every household and business must be locatable within a trusted national framework.

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Address is more than just a description of where a person lives or where a business operates. It is a point of connection between the citizen and the state; between the enterprise and opportunity; between identity and service.

Crucially, the digital addressing framework must integrate intelligently with other public systems, including digital identity and government databases. "When a verified identity can be linked securely to a verified address, the gains extend across financial inclusion, social interventions, logistics, planning and emergency response," Shetima explained. To ensure technical implementation and standards, the Federal Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation was appointed as the secretariat for the NAC.

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A country that cannot consistently locate its people and businesses carries an avoidable weakness into planning, commerce, security and social protection.