Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) has said it has successfully enrolled over 74 per cent of inmates nationwide into the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) database, contrary to media reports suggesting otherwise.

This was contained in a statement by the Service Public Relations Officer (SPRO), Abubakar Umar, yesterday, in Abuja.

Umar described as “misleading and inaccurate” a publication claiming that the National Identity Number (NIN) registration exercise was yet to commence in custodial centres nationwide.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the NIMC had granted the NCoS the licence to conduct the registration at 256 custodial centres nationwide.

This was followed by a request from the NCoS Controller General, Sylvester Nwakuche.

The initiative, approved in January 2025, is intended to integrate inmates into national development plans, enhance their security, and facilitate their identification in case of jailbreaks.

Umar clarified that the NIN registration of inmates in the custodial centres was not only ongoing but had recorded significant progress.

He said that most inmates across various custodial centres nationwide had already been successfully enrolled into the National Identity Database.