The National Population Commission (NPC) has launched an online platform for registering births and deaths nationwide, marking Nigeria’s transition to a fully digital civil registration system.
The commission stated that the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) platform became operational on July 1, 2026, allowing Nigerians to register births and deaths online, thereby reducing the need for physical visits to registration centres.
Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja, NPC Chairman, Dr Aminu Yusuf, said the initiative is designed to modernise civil registration and improve the availability of accurate population data for national planning and policy formulation.
“It is my distinct honour and privilege, on behalf of the National Population Commission, to formally announce the full commencement of the digital registration of births and deaths on the Vital Record Platform under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system, effective July 1, 2026,” Yusuf said.
He said the platform is now operational across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, adding that it builds on the launch of the E-CRVS system and the inauguration of the National Coordination Committee on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics by President Bola Tinubu in November 2023.
According to Yusuf, Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, but millions of children remain unregistered. He said birth registration coverage currently stands at about 57 per cent nationwide, while less than 20 per cent of deaths are officially registered.
“These gaps deprive many Nigerians of legal identity and limit the availability of reliable data needed for effective national planning,” he said.
To improve access to registration services, Yusuf said the commission has established 4,011 registration centres across the country’s 774 local government areas and plans to increase the number to about 8,000.
He said the digital platform offers round-the-clock online access, faster processing, reduced paperwork, automated data validation, stronger database security and digital certificate issuance where applicable. According to him, the system will also serve as a foundational database for other national data systems.
The NPC chairman also announced a partnership involving the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), UNICEF and Bankforte Technologies Limited to expand and decentralise birth registration services across the country.
On funding, Yusuf said the commission has reviewed charges for specialised administrative services such as record modifications, certificate reissuance, attestations and verification requests to support the long-term sustainability of the digital platform.
He, however, said birth registration and birth notification services will remain highly subsidised as part of the commission’s drive to achieve universal birth registration in Nigeria.