Nigerian ID to double as bank card

Nigeria's new national ID card which will function both as a national ID and as a bank card.

Nigerian government has announced a proposed Mastercard-branded National Identity smart cards with electronic payment capability, Nigerian newspaper the Guardian reported.

The issuance will start within the next three months under the auspices of the National Identity Management Commission and will cover citizens aged 16 and above.

Pensioners will be the first group to pilot the new scheme. The plan will create the largest rollout of an electronic payment solution of its kind at once, to an unbanked population.

Only 30 per cent of an estimated 160m Nigerians have access to financial services and with these cards, will bring the other 70 per cent into formal financial system.

The country has focused on improving access, the usage and quality of financial services in the program. Personal data, including biometric data will remain with the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Kenya, under the Jubilee Manifesto, has proposed to establish a universal single registration system activated at birth which will streamline birth registration, National ID registration, voter registration, NHIF, NSSF, and any other tax or commercial related registration. Whereas not conceptualized to including payments, it seems likely to be able to include the service.