The Nigerian government has officially launched the ECOWAS National Biometric Identity Card (ENBIC).
The ECOWAS biometric ID card is set to replace the current ECOWAS Travel Certificate, marking a milestone in regional integration, eleven years after the initial decision was adopted by the bloc’s Heads of State and Government.
It was gathered that the new identity management spearheaded by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) introduces a modern, secure, and technologically advanced travel document for Nigerian citizens.
It is designed to serve both as a travel document and as a residence permit in other ECOWAS countries.
The official inauguration took place on Friday in Abuja under the theme: “ENBIC: Enhancing Regional Integration and Security.”
Speaking at the ceremony, Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said the ECOWAS biometric ID card rollout is “a powerful new beginning” for secure mobility and regional integration, noting that the delay of more than a decade was uncharacteristic of Nigeria’s capacity.
He stated: “It is unlike the Nigerian standard. That is very unusual, but the good news is that President Tinubu came in, insisted on delivery, and today the promise has become a reality. This is leadership in action, not about what we will do but what we have done.”
Tunji-Ojo described the biometric card as the foundation of a new security and identity ecosystem that will transform intelligence gathering and border control.
“You cannot protect those you do not know. Identification is the bedrock of security,” he said, explaining that the card will help tackle irregular migration, integrate with global public key directories like ICAO, and relieve pressure on Nigeria’s passport system by providing ECOWAS-bound travellers with a simpler alternative.
“If you are not travelling outside ECOWAS, you don’t need a passport. This card takes you anywhere within the region,” he said.
He also linked the initiative to wider reforms championed by Tinubu, including the 2024 deployment of the UN-mandated Advanced Passenger Information System (APIS), which allows authorities to know travellers before they arrive.
“This government inherited problems but refused to give excuses. It has straightened situations that others postponed,” he said.
The minister added that the Immigration Service will next unveil the Single Travel Emergency Passport STEP in January to help stranded Nigerians return home seamlessly.
With the formal introduction of the ECOWAS National Biometric Identity Card, the minister said Nigeria is not only strengthening its borders but also reasserting its leadership in a region seeking deeper unity, safer mobility, and a digital future built on shared prosperity.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, represented by Permanent Secretary Mohammed Sanusi Danjuma, situated the rollout within Nigeria’s long-standing leadership in regional integration.
He recalled that the blueprint for the biometric system was first agreed at an ECOWAS summit hosted by Nigeria in 2014, adding that Friday’s launch “stands as a monument to shared political will” and proof of what West Africa can achieve when nations place collective security above individual interests.
He said the card represents far more than a digital credential. “Today we hold in our hands a simple card, but in our hearts we hold a profound hope,” he said, describing it as a symbol of dignity for migrant women, empowerment for cross-border traders, and a promise of a West Africa where borders become “bridges to opportunity rather than barriers to progress.”
Akume urged member states to accelerate nationwide rollouts and to harmonise databases to create an interoperable identity architecture across the sub-region.
He also called on the private sector, especially fintechs, to build innovative services around the platform to deepen inclusion and drive digital transformation.
In her remarks, Comptroller-General of Immigration, Kemi Nandap, said the milestone is both technical and historic.
“This is a strategic leap forward in modernising our identity and travel management systems,” she said, praising President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and commending the Interior Minister’s “dynamic guidance” in bringing the project to completion.
She explained that the ENBIC replaces the paper-based ECOWAS travel certificate and is built on advanced biometric and cryptographic technology compliant with ICAO and ECOWAS standards.
“Its biometric core, anchored on high-quality facial and fingerprint data, establishes a secure link between the holder and the credential. It will enhance verification, reduce document fraud, and disrupt transborder criminal networks,” she said.
Nandap said the socioeconomic benefits are equally significant, as the card empowers small-scale traders, improves labour mobility, boosts tourism, speeds up border processing, and strengthens cooperation across the region.
“It is a foundational instrument for a more secure, integrated, and prosperous West Africa,” she said.
President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Touray, also commended Nigeria for once again providing leadership at a moment when the region faces grave security challenges.
“In this world crisis, the leadership of Nigeria inspires all the citizens of West Africa,” he said through a representative.
He disclosed that ECOWAS forces were currently in Guinea-Bissau, preventing conflict, and saluted Nigeria’s role in regional peace and development.
He projected that by the year 2100, Nigeria would be among the world’s top five economies, adding that “this initiative is only the beginning” of a region-wide biometric identity ecosystem.
Chief of Mission of the International Organization for Migration IOM, Dimanche Sharon, described the ENBIC as “a very strategic step towards secure mobility,” saying it would greatly enhance identity verification and migration governance across the sub-region.
The rollout was witnessed by paramilitary service chiefs, the Director General of the Department of State Services, ECOWAS commissioners, diplomatic corps members, and technology partners who collaborated on the project.
Pan-Atlantic Kompass reports that ENBIC was adopted by the leadership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in 2014. The first country to begin issuing the biometric card was Senegal, on 4 October 2016.
Before press time, only six of the 15 ECOWAS member states had fully deployed ENBIC. The countries that currently support and issue ENBIC are: Senegal; Guinea‑Bissau; Ghana; Benin; The Gambia; Sierra Leone; Nigeria, making the seventh in the list.
The ECOWAS biometric ID card was introduced to replace the old handwritten ECOWAS Travel Certificate. Under the new arrangement, the biometric card is intended to serve as a regional ID, travel document, and residence permit for citizens of ECOWAS member states.
The biometric card embeds an electronic chip that stores biometric and biographical data (photo, fingerprints, date and place of birth, etc.) to enable secure identity verification, reduce fraud, and make travel within the region easier.
