The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), says GSM operators have collected 47.8 million National Identification Number (NINs) from subscribers as at Jan 18.

This is contained in a statement by Dr Ikechukwu Adinde, NCC Director, Public Affairs on Tuesday in Lagos. Adinde quoted Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Isa Ali Pantami as saying that the figure showed that many Nigerian subscribers would be linked to their NINs before the Feb.9, deadline.

Pantami said that the collection of NIN was at an average of three to four SIMs per subscriber. He expressed the Federal Government’s appreciation for the commitment shown by stakeholders and citizens and urged them to submit their NINs before the deadline.

Pantami called on the technical team to fast-track the processes so that the project would be delivered soonest.

“The Technical Implementation Committee, under the Ministerial Task Force reported significant progress in the ongoing NIN-SIM linkage,” he said.

The minister drew attention of Nigerians to the App developed by federal government which allowed subscribers to link up to a maximum of seven SIMs to their NINs.

He however, urged Nigerians to secure and protect their NINs, urging subscribers to desist from selling their numbers or allowing others to use them for registration.

”For any action committed with the SIM, good or bad will be officially traced and attached to the NIN owner,” Pantami said.