If there was ever any doubt about which gender represents the highest population of people living in Nigeria, among those that have had their personal information taken by he government in particular, the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) is likely to have cleared that based on what the federal data-gathering agency has captured on its enrolment dashboard so far in April.

Section 16 of the NIMC Act 2007 defines persons that can be registered in the country’s data bank to include Nigerian citizens, permanent residents and foreigners who are legally residing in Nigeria for 2 years or more.

Three days ago, it was the final day in March and a chance to get to know these people all the more. As at then, what the results showed ultimately was more active by the male segment when compared to the females.

Chopping these lengthy words down to figures means NIMC’s enrolment distribution by gender as at 31 March 2025 reveals there have been 118,432,521million enrolled persons.

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On a pie chart measuring the difference, it displayed that 56.5 percent of the registered populace are men, while the opposite gender retains the remaining figure of 43.5 percent of Nigeria’s residents who possess a National Identity Number (NIN), which is gradually pushing itself to become the mark of acceptance.

It has been reported that the future of the NIN will see it transition to a functionality which can be integrated into everyday life, as a means of confirming one’s identity or as the pathway for payment.

Well, so far, it has shown that the menfolk are once again leading on the data compliance front as they have revealed themselves to be more willing to volunteer information to the government, who in turn use the details that have been provided as a guideline when formulating policies.  

No matter what the enrolment dashboard shows, though, it isn’t enough to say that there are more women in Nigeria than men because the fact that the latter leads in this area simply does not conclude the argument considering a range of factors that have directly caused the current signing-up figures.

The K4D helpdesk report gives an inkling into the causative factors in 2019 when it connected the low levels of female participation and representation in Nigerian politics to a sexist and patronage-based political culture, combined with gendered economic and household inequalities.

All these factors are seen to be the main barriers to women’s participation in governance. Apart from the national identity number registrations by gender figures, there is also data representing the states where more certificates have been issued, as well as other places that have recorded low involvement by the populace.

While the NIMC enrolment dashboard offers valuable insights, it should not be the sole determinant of gender dominance. The data underscores the need for a nuanced understanding of gender representation, informed by broader socio-economic and cultural contexts.

The National Identity Number (NIN) has become a cornerstone of Nigeria’s identity management system, with over 118 million individuals registered as of March 31, 2025.

While the data reveals that 56.5 percent of registrants are male and 43.5 percent remaining are female, this disparity raises questions about gender representation and the broader implications of such statistics. Can these figures truly determine which gender dominates in Nigeria—or even globally?

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The numbers behind this story are from what the numbers look like at a sub-regional cadre. From the 118,432,521 enrollees recorded at the end of the previous month, Lagos State leads with over 12.7 million registrations based on this perspective, followed by Kano with 10.4 million NINs already received.

Where lower enrolment figures have been noticed have included Bayelsa, Ebonyi, and Ekiti, which collectively account for less than 3 million registrations. While men outnumber women in registrations in these southern states, this does not necessarily reflect actual population demographics.

Ayodele Johnson

Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.