The Federal Government has taken a major step toward developing a modern, digitized national addressing system. The National Addressing Council (NAC) ratified a preliminary framework during a meeting in Abuja chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima on Monday, according to a statement issued by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the VP on Media and Communications.
The decision marks a significant move to coordinate implementation across key public institutions. Under the new framework, the Federal Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation will serve as the Council’s secretariat. The ministry will be responsible for coordinating implementation and ensuring collaboration among the participating agencies.
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Coordinating the rollout
Speaking at the meeting, Vice President Shettima said the initiative aligns with the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda. The goal is to create an addressing system that supports economic activity, public service delivery, security and national planning.
“Under the Renewed Hope Agenda, our duty is to build institutions that match the energy and mobility of our people,” Shettima stated. “We must build a system that can locate every community, support enterprise without barriers and strengthen government without compromising privacy.”
Shettima described a functional addressing system as an important link between citizens, businesses and government institutions. He noted that the inability to accurately locate people and businesses weakens planning, commerce, security and social intervention programmes. “Wherever a citizen lives, wherever a business operates, wherever help is required, Nigeria should find the address,” he added.
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Shettima explained that the proposed digital framework must integrate seamlessly with identity management systems and government databases. “When a verified identity can be linked securely to a verified address, the gains extend across financial inclusion, social interventions, logistics, planning and emergency response,” he said.
To ensure effective implementation, the Federal Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation will coordinate technical execution, interoperability standards and systems integration. The government assigned specific responsibilities to several agencies to handle different aspects of the project.
The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) will oversee identity verification and authentication. The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) will support business address verification. The Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) will manage postcode administration and postal infrastructure. State governments and local government councils will drive implementation at the community level through the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria.
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The system, which has been in the works since 2017, aims to solve a logistical headache that plagues many developing nations. Without a reliable system to map locations, essential services often fail to reach their intended recipients, and businesses struggle to establish a physical presence.
For the average resident in a rural community, the absence of a formal address has historically meant difficulty accessing banking services or receiving official mail. By formalizing these locations, the government hopes to standardize how data moves through the country, ensuring that digital infrastructure supports real‑world accessibility rather than creating new barriers for those outside major urban centers.