The Federal Government has officially launched a nationwide digital birth and death registration system under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) initiative, in a move aimed at modernising Nigeria’s civil registration process and improving the country’s vital statistics.
Chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC), Dr. Aminu Yusuf, announced the rollout during a press briefing in Abuja, describing the initiative as a significant step towards building a secure, technology-driven civil registration system.
According to him, the new VitalReg platform became fully operational across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory on July 1, 2026.
Dr. Yusuf said the digital platform is designed to ensure that every birth and death in Nigeria is promptly and accurately recorded, providing citizens with easier access to legal identity while strengthening national data for planning and development.
He disclosed that Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, yet only about 57 per cent are officially registered. Death registration, he added, remains below 20 per cent, a gap that has continued to undermine national planning and leave many Nigerians without formal legal identity.
To address the challenge, the Commission has established more than 4,000 registration centres across the country’s 774 local government areas, with plans to expand the network to about 8,000 centres nationwide.
The NPC Chairman said the VitalReg platform will deliver faster and more efficient registration services through 24-hour online access, digital certificate issuance where applicable, reduced paperwork, improved data accuracy, and a more secure national database.
He added that the platform is integrated with Nigeria’s digital identity ecosystem and aligns with the Federal Government’s broader digital transformation agenda.
Dr. Yusuf also reaffirmed that birth registration and the issuance of birth certificates remain free for children between the ages of zero and five years, urging parents and guardians to take advantage of the service.
To expand access to registration services, the Commission announced a strategic partnership with the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), UNICEF, and Barnksforte Technologies Limited. The collaboration is expected to decentralise birth registration, improve service delivery, and boost registration coverage across the country.
