Nigerians would be paying for the new multipurpose national identity cards, the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has said.

Peter Iwegbu, NIMC’s head of card management services while speaking at a two-day roundtable meeting organised for journalists in Lagos said there is limited government revenue to handle the cost of production of the new ID cards.

Iwegbu said with the payment, the national identity cards would only be produced for those who need it to avoid a repetition of past mistakes of issuing physical cards to Nigerians for free, which many did not collect.

He added that in the last production attempt, over two million cards were produced but many are yet to be collected by their owners.

“The government’s limited revenue is also a major factor in the decision to make Nigerians pay for the new ID card,” he said.

In his address, Lanre Yusuf, the agency’s Director of Information Technology said the idea of a free national ID card in the past was a disaster.

Yusuf said, “To get the new national ID card, Nigerians will need to make a payment, select a pickup location, and then collect their card from the chosen location.

“The government has implemented programmes to make the card accessible to the less privileged Nigerians who cannot afford it but require it to access government support.

“This initiative demonstrates the government’s commitment to inclusivity and equality,” Yusuf added.