The National Population Commission has commenced nationwide digital registration of births and deaths through its Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics system, ending decades of reliance on manual, paper-based documentation.
NPC Chairman, Dr Aminu Yusuf, announced the full rollout of the VitalReg platform on Wednesday in Abuja, saying the system had been operational across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory since July 1, 2026.
Yusuf described the initiative as one of the most significant reforms in the history of civil registration in Nigeria and a major step towards resolving the country’s persistent legal identity and demographic data gaps.
According to him, Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, but millions of births and deaths are not officially documented.
He disclosed that birth registration coverage stands at about 57 per cent nationwide, while death registration remains below 20 per cent.
“These gaps deprive many Nigerians of legal identity and limit the availability of reliable data needed for effective national planning,” Yusuf said.
The NPC chairman said the commission currently operates 4,011 functional registration centres across Nigeria’s 774 local government areas.
He added that plans were underway to increase the number to approximately 8,000 centres to make registration services more accessible, particularly in rural and underserved communities.
Yusuf said civil registration went beyond the issuance of certificates, stressing that accurate birth and death records provide reliable national statistics for public policy, budgeting, resource allocation and development planning.
He described the transition as part of efforts to build a modern, efficient and technology-driven civil registration system that meets international standards and supports the Federal Government’s digital transformation agenda.
Under the new system, the VitalReg platform will provide 24-hour online access to birth and death registration services.
The commission said the platform would also provide faster processing, digital certificate issuance where applicable, automated data validation, reduced paperwork, shorter waiting times and a more secure national civil registration database.
Yusuf added that the platform was designed to integrate with other government institutions within Nigeria’s digital identity ecosystem, including the National Identity Management Commission.
“This digital innovation is one of the most transformative reforms in the history of civil registration in Nigeria,” he said.
“It reflects the commission’s unwavering commitment to leveraging technology to improve service delivery, strengthen data integrity, and guarantee that every birth and every death occurring in Nigeria is documented accurately and securely.”
The digital transition is expected to strengthen legal identity management, improve the accuracy of Nigeria’s demographic records and provide the government with reliable statistics for policy formulation and national development.
NPC Federal Commissioner representing Oyo State, Dr Eyitayo Oyetunji, described the development as a historic milestone for the commission.
Oyetunji said that, for the first time since the NPC commenced civil registration in 1988, births and deaths would no longer be registered primarily through manual paper forms.
“From July 1, 2026, civil registration is no longer being done manually using paper forms,” he said.
“The new system also allows Nigerians living abroad to access self-service registration from anywhere in the world.”
The NPC’s online services include birth registration for persons aged zero to 17, birth attestation for adults and other civil-registration services, although eligibility requirements and charges may differ for specialised or self-service applications.
The commission assured Nigerians that birth registration for children from birth to five years and death registration would remain free government services.
Yusuf said the commission had reviewed charges for specialised administrative services, including record modification, certificate reissuance, birth attestation and verification requests.
He maintained that the revised charges were intended to sustain the digital infrastructure and not to prevent Nigerians from obtaining legal identity documents.
“Let me assure Nigerians that this review is not intended to create barriers to access,” he said.
“Birth registration and birth notification services remain highly subsidised, in line with the commission’s commitment to achieving universal registration.”
The NPC’s official self-service portal also states that birth registration for children below five years remains free at its physical registration centres, although convenience charges may apply to some online self-service and specialised services.
Oyetunji urged the media to sensitise Nigerians to the platform and clarify the difference between free statutory registration and specialised administrative services that may attract charges.
The commission said it was working with the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, NIMC, UNICEF and Barnksforte Technologies Limited to decentralise and localise birth registration services.
The partnership is expected to bring registration closer to Nigerians at the grassroots and strengthen the capacity of personnel responsible for recording vital events.
Barnksforte is providing technological infrastructure, cybersecurity and system-maintenance support for the platform.
The NPC said it would continue training registration personnel to ensure births and deaths were promptly and accurately recorded through VitalReg.
Yusuf said the nationwide rollout built upon the November 8, 2023 launch of the E-CRVS system and inauguration of the National Coordination Committee on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics by President Bola Tinubu.
The 2023 initiative was introduced to accelerate improvements in Nigeria’s civil-registration system and support the global target of providing legal identity for everyone, including birth registration, by 2030.
The NPC chairman said the nationwide digital rollout represented a critical step towards ensuring that every child born in Nigeria had a recognised legal identity and that every death was accurately recorded.
He added that comprehensive civil registration would provide the evidence required for planning schools, hospitals, housing, social interventions and other public services.
The commission urged Nigerians to use the authorised NPC platforms or visit the nearest registration centre and to avoid unauthorised agents demanding unofficial payments.
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