Nigeria has taken another major step in its ongoing digital transformation with the nationwide deployment of an online civil registration system designed to make birth and death registration faster, more accessible and more reliable. The initiative represents a significant advancement in the country's efforts to strengthen legal identity, improve public service delivery and generate credible demographic data for national development.
At the heart of the reform is the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system, powered by the VitalReg platform, which officially became operational across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory on July 1, 2026. Through the platform, Nigerians can now register births and deaths online and, where applicable, obtain official certificates without the need for repeated physical visits.
Announcing the rollout during a press briefing in Abuja, National Population Commission (NPC) Chairman, Dr. Aminu Yusuf, described the initiative as one of the most transformative developments in Nigeria's civil registration history. According to him, the platform reflects the commission's commitment to using technology to improve service delivery, strengthen data integrity and ensure that every birth and death in the country is documented accurately and securely.
The reform addresses a longstanding national challenge. Nigeria records an estimated five million births every year, yet millions of births and deaths still go unregistered. While birth registration coverage currently stands at about 57 per cent nationwide, death registration remains below 20 per cent. These gaps, Yusuf noted, leave many Nigerians without a recognised legal identity and reduce the availability of reliable data needed for effective governance, evidence-based policymaking and long-term national planning.
The newly launched VitalReg platform is expected to significantly improve that situation by introducing round-the-clock online access to registration services, digital certificate issuance where applicable, stronger data validation processes and a more secure national civil registration database. The digital system is also designed to reduce paperwork, minimise waiting times and eliminate unnecessary travel for citizens seeking registration services.
Beyond digitising the registration process, the platform has been built to integrate with Nigeria's broader digital identity ecosystem, reinforcing the government's wider digital transformation agenda while creating a more connected and efficient public service framework.
To ensure that more Nigerians can benefit from the initiative, the National Population Commission has expanded its physical registration infrastructure across the country. The commission currently operates 4,011 functional registration centres covering Nigeria's 774 local government areas and plans to increase that number to about 8,000 centres, bringing registration services even closer to communities nationwide.
The commission is also working with key institutions to deepen access to legal identity services at the grassroots level. Yusuf disclosed that the NPC has partnered with the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), UNICEF and Barnksforte Technologies Limited to decentralise birth registration and strengthen community-level service delivery.
As part of the new framework, certain specialised administrative services including record modifications, certificate reissuance, attestations and verification requests, will attract revised fees to support the maintenance and sustainability of the digital infrastructure.
However, Yusuf assured Nigerians that birth registration and birth notification services will remain highly subsidised, stressing that the fee review is intended to sustain the digital system rather than create barriers to access. He reaffirmed the commission's commitment to achieving universal registration across the country.
The NPC chairman encouraged parents, guardians and other stakeholders to register births and deaths promptly, emphasising that widespread public participation will be critical to the success of the initiative.
As Nigeria continues to modernise its public institutions through technology, the nationwide deployment of the VitalReg platform lays the foundation for a stronger civil registration system that can guarantee every Nigerian a legal identity from birth, provide dependable demographic data for national development and support more effective governance in the years ahead.
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