The Lagos State Government, in collaboration with the National Social Safety-Net Coordinating Office (NASSCO), has launched a three-day training programme for field personnel aimed at updating the National Social Register (NSR) using the National Identification Number (NIN). This initiative is designed to improve the effectiveness of social intervention schemes.
The training, titled ‘Integration of the NIN with the NSR Update,’ commenced over the weekend at the Dover Hotel in Ikeja.
Speaking at the event, the Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget, Mrs Olayinka Ojo, stated that the updated register would assign a unique identity to beneficiaries, ensuring social inclusion and greater transparency.
She noted that, as of February 2025, the Lagos State Single Social Register (LASSR) contained records of 759 poor and vulnerable households and 2,681,507 individuals. Mrs Ojo outlined the key objectives of the training exercise, stating:
“The main goals of this training include certifying trainees—who will act as front-end enrolment partners with NIMC—so they can facilitate NIN enrolment and verification. It also aligns with the federal government’s initiative to link intervention beneficiaries to their unique identities, preventing duplication and enhancing transparency. Additionally, it supports digital transformation by advancing identity management systems.”
Mrs Ojo further highlighted Lagos State’s strategic role in the initiative, emphasising that it would strengthen the credibility of the register, improve accountability, streamline beneficiaries’ access to interventions, and facilitate better tracking of vulnerable households and government expenditure in the social protection sector.
Also speaking at the event, the Lagos State Coordinator for the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Mr Olumide Aremu, noted that the agency has a history of sharing data with government bodies and corporate organisations. He stressed the importance of data integration in monitoring the impact of government interventions.
“This initiative allows the government to evaluate the effectiveness of its programmes. It provides insights into what is working, what needs improvement, and whether assistance is reaching the intended beneficiaries. Data integration is not new—we have previously linked information with banks and immigration services, and the process continues with BVN and NIN synchronisation,” Aremu explained.
He also highlighted the distinctiveness of the exercise, particularly its focus on the vulnerable population and grassroots data collection, assuring that the process would be seamless with continuous system monitoring and operational readiness across local government areas and LCDAs.
In a presentation titled “Harnessing the Power of Data for Social Inclusion”, the National Coordinator of NASSCO, Mrs Funmi Olotu, underscored the significance of utilising NIN enrolment tools to capture precise records, ensuring the efficient distribution of social interventions.
Represented by Dr Daniel Amba, Manager of the National Grievance Redress Mechanism (NGRM), she explained: “The deployment of NIMC devices for enrolment, Kobo Collect for data gathering, and the subsequent updating of household information will enable us to obtain accurate records and direct support to those who need it the most.
“The State Social Register (SSR) is a cornerstone of our social safety-net initiatives, acting as a unified database for targeting and intervention efforts. By integrating NIN with the SSR, we will refine the accuracy and efficiency of our targeting methods, ensuring that the most disadvantaged households receive the assistance they require.”