The National Population Commission (NPC) Yobe state office, Wednesday, commenced statewide digital registration of births and deaths under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system, marking a major shift from the country’s long-standing paper-based civil registration process.
Speaking at a press briefing in Damaturu, the Federal Commissioner representing Yobe, Alhaji Tonga Betara Bularafa, said the VitalReg platform became fully operational across the state’s 17 local government areas effective 1 July, 2026.
“This step is significant in our collective efforts to strengthen civil registration, enhance the generation of vital statistics, and ensure that every birth and death occurring in Yobe is captured through a modern, efficient, and digitally enabled registration system,” Bularafa said.
The initiative builds on the national launch of the E-CRVS system, inaugurated by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on 8 November 2023. The digital platform is now operational nationwide across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Bularafa noted that Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, yet birth registration coverage stands at only about 57 percent nationwide, while death registration remains below 20 percent.
“These gaps deprive many Nigerians of legal identity and limit the availability of reliable data needed for effective national planning,” he said.