The National Population Commission said the nationwide fully digital registration of births and deaths through its VitalReg platform became operational across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory on July 1, 2026.

The commission, on Monday, also said it would commemorate the 2026 World Population Day with a renewed focus on empowering young Nigerians and expanding access to legal identity.

NPC Chairman, Dr Aminu Yusuf, disclosed this on Tuesday during a press briefing to announce activities marking this year’s World Population Day and the rollout of the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics system.

According to him, the digital registration platform represents a major reform aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s civil registration system, improving service delivery and providing reliable demographic data for national planning.

“It is therefore my distinct honour and privilege, on behalf of the National Population Commission, to formally announce the nationwide commencement of the full digital registration of births and deaths through the VitalReg Platform under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) System,” Yusuf said.

He added, “Effective from 1 July 2026, this transformative initiative has become fully operational across the thirty-six States of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory.”

Yusuf said the commission had established 4,011 registration centres across the country’s 774 local government areas and was expanding the network to about 8,000 centres to improve access to registration services.

He explained that the platform would provide faster registration, 24-hour online access to services, digital certificate issuance where applicable, improved data accuracy, enhanced security and a credible national civil registration database.

“The VitalReg Platform has been specifically designed to transform the way Nigerians access civil registration services.

“Among its numerous benefits are faster and more efficient registration processes, twenty-four-hour online access to services, digital certificate issuance where applicable, reduced paperwork, shorter waiting periods, improved data accuracy through automated validation, enhanced security of records, and the establishment of a credible national Civil Registration and Vital Statistics database,” he said.

The NPC chairman said the commission had entered into a partnership with the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, the National Identity Management Commission, UNICEF and Barnksforte Technologies Limited to decentralise birth registration and legal identity services.

He noted that while some specialised administrative services would attract revised fees, birth registration and birth notification services would remain highly subsidised.

“Let me assure Nigerians that this review is not intended to create barriers to access. Birth registration and birth notification services remain highly subsidised in line with the Commission’s commitment to achieving universal civil registration,” he said.

Speaking on this year’s World Population Day, themed “Realising the Hopes and Aspirations of Young People, Today and for the Future,” Yusuf said Nigeria’s estimated population of over 238 million presented enormous opportunities if young people are equipped with education, healthcare, employment and legal identity.

“One of the most fundamental rights every young person must enjoy is the right to legal identity. Before a child can access many essential government and social services, that child must first be officially recognised by the State. This begins with birth registration,” he said.

He called on the media to promote conversations on youth development, digital transformation, legal identity and population management, stressing that credible demographic data remains essential for evidence-based planning and sustainable national development.