As gathered, the world and Nigeria would mark the International Identity Day and National Identity Day, as such, Nigerians were admonished to support the development of digital economy by embracing the use of digital identities.
The Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, who disclosed the development, said that the celebration of the National Identity Day would take place virtually on the same date, with; Identity for Health, Sustainable Development and Growth as the theme.
In a statement signed by his spokesperson, Mrs Uwa Suleiman, on Tuesday in Abuja, Pantami reiterated that digital IDs play critical roles in the development of digital economies, as they were often called the fabrics of the digital economies.
He explained that digital identification can be an important catalyst for various development initiatives in the continent such as impacting on trade, governance, social protection, financial inclusion, domestic resource mobilisation, as well as security and human rights and encouraged Nigerians to visit NIMC accredited centres for their digital identities.
“We will start by capturing Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Nigeria and will also support the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) and other stakeholders to ensure that we make the process of obtaining digital identities swift and secure.
“One of the key objectives of pillar 6 (Soft Infrastructure) of National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) is support for the accelerated implementation of a Digital Identity Programme,” he said.
The minister said that his ministry is committed to ensuring that Nigeria derives the benefits of a functional digital ID system and calls on all stakeholders to support the process.
