From Atiku Sarki, Abuja
The Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has partnered with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to integrate data systems, enabling seamless validation of workers’ information under the Employees’ Compensation Scheme (ECS) through their National Identification Numbers (NIN).
Managing Director of the Fund, Barrister Oluwaseun Faleye, disclosed this during a courtesy visit to the Director General of NIMC, Engr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote, in Abuja. According to Faleye, the collaboration is geared towards enhancing efficiency, eliminating data duplication, and boosting transparency in the ECS framework.
“This partnership will help bring sanity to the identity sector. No one should be enrolled in the ECS unless they have a verified NIN,” Faleye said. “Just like getting a passport today requires NIN verification, we must apply the same rigor in social security schemes.”
He noted that the partnership with NIMC would expand NSITF’s access to verified demographic data, thereby improving service delivery to workers who suffer workplace injuries, disabilities, or death — the core beneficiaries of the ECS.
“We believe that linking up with NIMC will fast-track identity verification, help us build an accurate national database for ECS beneficiaries, and ultimately support broader social security innovations in Nigeria,” Faleye said.
He stressed that the visit by the NSITF management team was not symbolic, but a strategic move to deepen inter-agency cooperation. “Beyond data verification, this alliance will allow us to jointly drive advocacy around digital and technology inclusion in our national workforce,” he added.
According to him, while data gathering is vital, the real impact lies in applying that information to improve lives and expand access to social protection systems.
“We can map out service demographics and plan outreach better when we have clean, unified data. That’s the long-term goal here,” Faleye explained.
The NSITF boss also proposed the creation of a joint working group between both agencies to ensure smooth and swift implementation of the integration plan.
Responding, the Director General of NIMC, Engr. Coker-Odusote, assured the Fund of NIMC’s full commitment to the collaboration.
“We understand how critical this is for access to services,” she said. “I will instruct our IT team to immediately liaise with your team, and a technical working group will be set up to begin integration work without delay.”
She hinted that both institutions could jointly brief the media upon completion of the integration phase. “From a week today, we will set timelines and monitor the process closely. Once we achieve our target, we’ll include this as part of our milestone achievements and may even hold a joint press conference,” she said.
NSITF, established to provide social security services to Nigerian workers, has in recent years been repositioning the Employees’ Compensation Scheme to align with global best practices. According to findings by Triumph, the agency believes technology partnerships like this are key to that transformation.