Speaking on Wednesday, July 17, 2025, at a high-level two-day workshop Guild of Online Publishers (GOCOP) held in Lagos, the NIMC boss reaffirmed her administration’s commitment to building an inclusive, secure, and citizen-centric identity system, while urging media professionals to play a more proactive role in combating misinformation, raising awareness, and building public trust.

“Your role is pivotal and indispensable to the successful transformation of Nigeria’s digital identity landscape,” Coker-Odusote declared through Lanre Yusuf, director of Software and Biometrics at NIMC, while thanking the publishers for their consistent reportage and support. “You have walked this journey with us. You have reported the highs and the lows. You have challenged us, supported us, and held up a mirror to our processes.”

Since assuming office, Engr. Coker-Odusote said she has led far-reaching reforms at NIMC, and now delivering measurable impact across sectors.

In just three years, NIN enrolment has surged from 72.7 million in January 2022 to over 122 million as of July 2025, representing a 49% increase.

This, she said, is not just about numbers, but about ensuring more Nigerians have a verifiable means of identity to access life-changing services, from education to agriculture, healthcare, social welfare, and finance.

Building a People-Centered Identity System

According to the DG, the new identity system, unlike the fragmented, exclusionary structure of the past, is now being anchored on inter-agency coordination, citizen inclusion, digital integration, and system transparency.

She highlighted critical partnerships with agencies such as JAMB, FIRS, NHIS, NCoS, CBN, FRSC, NSITF, PENCOM, and the Nigeria Immigration Service, which have collectively strengthened authentication and verification services across government operations.

“These collaborations are delivering real, tangible benefits,” she noted. “Students are accessing loans faster through NELFUND. Verified farmers are receiving subsidies. Entrepreneurs are unlocking business support.”

A System That Works, and a Workforce behind It

Engr. Coker-Odusote also spotlighted NIMC’s internal reforms aimed at strengthening its workforce. Over 2,300 members of staff have been promoted between 2023 and 2024, while more than 1,300 officers have undergone training and re-training.

She further announced that the Commission has successfully cleared a two-year backlog of payments owed to front-end enrolment partners, restoring trust and deepening collaboration.

Technological tools like the NINAuth mobile app, Self-Service NIN Enrolment and Modification platforms, and Contactless Biometric Solutions have also been introduced to speed up service delivery and enhance user experience.

In a heartfelt appeal, Engr. Coker-Odusote invited media stakeholders, especially online publishers under the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP), to move from mere reportage to active collaboration.

“We urge you to combat misinformation, promote transparency, and use your platforms to ensure every Nigerian knows their rights and the value of identity,” she said.

She also noted that gaps remain in digital literacy, public awareness, and trust. These gaps, she said, are best addressed through a sustained media partnership grounded in fact-based storytelling, public enlightenment campaigns, and accurate information.

“Together, we can ensure that every Nigerian is empowered to say, confidently and securely: ‘I am recognised. I am included. I am identified,” she concluded.

Also speaking, Mrs. Tito Ejenavi, coordinator of the Project Implementation Unit (PIU) for the Nigeria Digital Identification for Development (ID4D) Project, said it was more than just another media workshop; it was a call to action.

She said the goal was to build stronger bridges between Nigeria’s digital identity ecosystem and the media voices that shape public opinion.

Mrs. Ejenavi underscored the critical role that the media plays in shaping narratives around national identity.

“You are the conscience of our democracy,” she told the Fourth Estate. “You influence public behaviour and amplify the voices of everyday Nigerians. This partnership matters.”

“Our mission is rooted in the principle of inclusion,” she declared. “We’re not just building systems—we’re investing in people.”

Since the project became effective in 2021, tangible milestones have emerged:

• Over 7,167 enrolment agents trained and certified across rural communities.
• Critical policies validated, including the National Inclusion Strategy and the Disability Enrolment Policy.
• Technological upgrades to improve biometric systems, data recovery infrastructure, and service delivery.
• The rollout of NIMS 2.0, Nigeria’s next-generation identity management system, aimed at deepening reach and functionality.

On her part, Ms. Maureen Chigbo, the GOCOP President thanked the management of NIMC for organizing the roundtable, adding that they are ready to work with the Commission to ensure accurate information are disseminated regarding digital identity management in the country.

“And you might ask me: What is the very essence of the Guild? The very essence of the Guild is to sanitize the online publishing community. Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, have helped to sanitize the industry.

“We as professionals who have been in the industry for years, and I mean if you put all of us together, we have more than 1000 years of experience.

“And that’s why today, GOCOP is fast becoming a household name. And it’s not just becoming a household name; we want it to be entrenched in the minds of all the chief executives in the country including the parastatals.

She went ahead to present GOCOP’s book to the representatives of NIMC, while calling for support to (GOCOP) members.

“Members of Guild of Corporate Online Publishers are just journalists. No, we are not. We are mediapreneurs (media entrepreneurs),” Ms. Chigbo said.

The roundtable, now in its fifth edition, is part of a broader initiative by NIMC and Nigeria Digital ID4D, a project co-funded by the World Bank, European Investment Bank, and French Development Agency, to increase the number of Nigerians with a National Identification Number (NIN).

GOCOP is the foremost body of online publishers in Nigeria. And it has just told its story. A story that drips with courage, will, vision and tenacity.

The story of GOCOP has been captured in a book aptly titled, NIGERIA MEDIA RENAISSANCE: GOCOP Perspectives on Online Publishing.

The book is a zesty, front-row compendium of the metamorphosis of online publishing in Nigeria rendered in racy prose by media gladiators who are all members of GOCOP. It was unveiled on June 17, in Abuja, at a gathering of eagles and stars in the Nigerian journalism firmament.

The event was more than a book launch. It was also a fundraiser for N2.3 billion GOCOP MEDIA CENTRE; a one-stop media resort encompassing offices, halls, library, others.

The Presidency, captains of industry, the academia, politicians, the diplomatic community and everybody that is somebody was present.

A testament to the seriousness of GOCOP and an authentication of the acceptability of GOCOP as the only genuine constellation of professional journalists operating in the online space.

The roll call is a rich cast comprising the incumbent Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris and his predecessor Alhaji Lai Mohammed, both media gurus but of varying modus vivendi and temperament. Idris who chaired the occasion showered encomium on GOCOP for chronicling the birthing and trajectory of GOCOP.

He is a huge fan of GOCOP, and members love him for his calm, non-combative disposition.

The book is a first-hand account of the history of a group essentially formed to breath life into the online journalism ecosystem which at that time was the playground of quacks, media hounds and professional misfits who took advantage of a vacuum created by the absence of ethically-driven professional journalists in the online community.

GOCOP was registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission in 2013 as Nigerian Online Publishers Association (NOPA). Its emergence soon got a few media miscreants and impostors roiled and enraged. These were the purveyors of fake news and mercantilists who report news for money, and not as a public service rendered professionally.

They were not guided by the demand of both duty and the call of journalism. Their motivation was lucre. Their tool was blackmail. They deployed this to do damage to the journalism profession. And hell, they did so much damage, disseminating bare-faced falsehood cloned in their devious and grossly infantile mind.

These media shams, therefore, saw the emergence of GOCOP, a group of professional journalists with undeniable pedigree, as an existential threat; a formidable group capable of eclipsing them from the online journalism agora. So, they fought back, futilely so, except, they succeeded in causing a rebranding of NOPA to GOCOP in 2014.

Ever since, GOCOP had grown from an informal chat between two journalists to a 120-strong membership of seasoned journalists flaunting over 2,000 years cumulative experience in print and broadcast journalism. GOCOP has transformed into a formidable armada of grounded and richly up-skilled journalists spread across the world.

They are the first to break the news. They are not fazed by the competition. They report facts, and explore the often treacherous labyrinth of investigative journalism. Some GOCOP members are multiple-award winners.

It is a mix of scholarly journalists, lawyers still immersed in journalism. And their knowledge bandwidth knows no limit.

They report and analyse the economy, politics, sports, agriculture, environment, oil and gas, real estate, insurance, banking, society, and every sphere of human endeavour, making it the preferred platform for advertisers.

The GOCOP fraternity is beyond reporting. Members are mediapreneurs captured within the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) sub-sector.

They are employers of labour and tax-payers, contributing to the GDP of the nation. Birthed as a counterpoise to the mushrooming of fake news purveyors, GOCOP, it must be emphasised, has crested the curve of responsible journalism and has succeeded, reasonably so, in pushing the ethically-deficient and mostly intellectually stunted impostors out of the online journalism space, limiting them to occasional pop-ups on social media.

The book was reviewed by a consummate public relations czar and scholar, Dr. Ike Neliaku, who is currently the President of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR).

Neliaku who himself is a treasure trove of knowledge described the book “as a classic documentation of factual trajectory of a great destiny, whose time has come. With a powerful storytelling technique, ‘photo speak’, use of poetic devices as well as in-depth interview, readers will not want to put it down until they read the whole chapters and epilogue on behind-the-scene intrigues that played during GOCOP registration process with the CAC. The secret behind this irresistibility is the journalistic narration of events and contributions that are captivating about GOCOP transformation and its strategic influence on online journalism and digital economy.”

While recommending the book for all, Neliaku reminds GOCOP members, and indeed all journalists, that strive for excellence and ethical standard of the words of caution of Dapo Olorunyomi, the inimitable publisher of Premium Times, an audacious online journalism platform in Nigeria with a bent for investigative journalism, whom in his foreword to the book wrote: “The lessons from history are clear: Freedom must never be taken for granted. To safeguard this freedom, the online journalism community must collaborate to strengthen ethical, fact-based journalism and resist the forces that seek to undermine it.”

This is the path GOCOP members have chosen: To uphold press freedom and defend civil liberties by practicing fact-based reportage guided by the creeds of ethics, fairness and justice. GOCOP is no longer an idea.

It is a phenomenon, a media movement steeped in advocacy, information dissemination, data journalism, edutainment, development and agenda-setting.

This book should be a companion of students of media studies, journalists, PR and Advertising practitioners, lawyers especially those with interest in media law, teachers and anybody interested in seeking knowledge in this furiously competitive digital age. It deserves a place in the libraries of all higher institutions in Nigeria.

*Ichie Ken Ugbechie, publisher Political Economist, is a GOCOP member

They are expected to leverage different online platforms and technology to promote their products or services and more with their audiences.

Mr Olúmǐdé Ìyàndá, the publisher of the QEDNG, who made the call during his presentation at the capacity-building session of the 8th Annual General Meeting of GOCOP at Reverton Hotel, Lokoja, Kogi State, insisted that media managers should post their stories where their readers can easily read them.

Ìyàndá, who stated that many readers take interest in watching short video clicks instead of reading long texts, urged mediapreneurs to equally include videos and as part of their stories to generate more traffic.

Noting that leveraging on social media goes a long way to promote websites, he called on Publishers to know where their readers have gone to and accordingly plant their stories there.

‘’Internet penetration in Nigeria is about 45.5 per cent. Over 40 per cent of these users engage with news on Facebook, Tik Tok. Yet, 75 per cent of internet users do not go pass first page, so, it is important to use social media platforms to promote content and engage with users,’’ Mr. Ìyàndá said.

Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Tiktok, among others, he said, were variable channels to reach readers.

Speaking further, he urged GOCOP members to now wear the garb of business decision-makers as Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) upon whose shoulders rest the success or otherwise and the fate of their workforce. He said the view the CEOs hold on their role would impact the way they related with their clients.

Iyanda explained that publishers as small and medium entrepreneurs (SMEs) must learn how to adapt to changing consumer behaviours to beat the increasing competition in the digital space.

For instance, he harped the need for data to make appropriate decisions.

“Don’t decide what your audience needs. If your customers want tea, don’t give them coffee, prioritise  digital marketing and be active on all digital marketing platforms, ‘’ he advised theat the over 100 members of GOCOP present at this year’s conference.

Mr. Ìyàndá spoke on “Leveraging Digital Marketing: Strategies For Online Publishers,’’ as part of the general theme of this year’s GOCOP conference titled, Nigeria: Tackling Insecurity, Power Deficit, And Transitioning To Digital Economy.

He urged Publishers to know when to charge for stories and when not, explaining that placing fees for public relations or promotional stories for commercial interests did not breach journalism ethics.

He noted that journalism would not only be seen as a social or humanitarian service but also as a business where bills must be settled by the entrepreneur.

He warned Publishers to beware of other professionals who collect money from their clients to publish stories only to turn round to use subtle methods to slip the stories into the media.

Mr. Ìyàndá, who warned that media professionals should maintain the code of ethics in all they do, urged Publishers to strike the right balance between ethics and demands of business.

Every year, GOCOP embarks on business sessions at its annual conferences where members are brought up to date with latest tech in online publishing as well as focus on means of increasing and generating revenues in online publishing.

Speaking at the pre-conference business session of the 2023 annual conference of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) held at the Abuja Continental Hotel, recently, Nweke said that by developing web analytical strategy, mediapreneurs under GOCOP will be propelling their websites for healthy growth.

According to Nweke, who dwelt on ‘How to GROW your website: The Fundamentals’ at the per-conference session of the 7th annual conference of GOCOP,  noted that such a growth strategy must include making out time to check the personal health of the strategists themselves, especially the chief executive officers.

This, he said, is imperative due to the level of stress and obvious distractions associated with managing a burgeoning media concern in this digital era.

Stressing that this is prerequisite to having a healthy website because health is wealth with profitable return on investment as the bottom-line.

“Above all, make out time to check your personal health, which is prerequisite to checking your website healthiness; health is wealth,” he declared.

In developing growth scheme for their businesses, Nweke who also is the lead consulting strategist at ITREALMS, advised the online mediapreneurs to come up with two approach tools, which comprise strategic and technical components.

The strategic component, he said, would afford them to organize their websites to reflect business goals by ensuring they are aligned.

“That way, you could know what to measure going forward,” he said.

On the technical component, Nweke pointed out that it would enable them to examine everything from site architecture and page loading speeds to the quality of the user experience; all the moving parts contributing to your goals while supporting your specific customer digital footprint on a given website.

Nweke cited an instance of using the Google PageSpeed Insight (PSI) to deepen web analytics and search engine optimisation (SEO), underscoring that any anticipated growth must have a ‘GROW’ model alignment.

Stages of a ‘GROW’ model, he said revolves around the goal, realty, obstacles cum options and way forward.

“The goal is the end point, where the Publisher wants to be and must be clearly stated, so that when achieved its noticeable,” he said.

On the reality, he said, is where the Publishers and or the websites are now, taking cognizance of what are the issues, the challenges, how far are they away from their goal?

“The obstacles stopping the Publishers/websites getting from where they are now to where they want to be, need to be properly identified as well as available options to find ways of dealing with them if they are to make progress and grow.

On the way forward, Nweke said it involves converting the options into actionable steps which will take the Publisher to anticipated goal built on commitment and willingness to advance further the growth.

In advancing the growth goal, publishers, he advised should do everything possible to make their websites more users, readers and search engine friendly.

He suggested in addition to establishing content authority, perfecting website technical SEO via multivariate testing in order to create a seamless mobile experience, by use of

Google PageSpeed Insights (PSI) which is a popular, but free tool that analyzes the page speed of a website on mobile and desktop devices.

Further, Nweke canvassed for deployment of latest image compressor formats to improve website growth like the use of WebP created by Google since 2010 and AVIF developed by Alliance for Open Media, a non-profit organization since 2019 which translates to faster downloads and less data consumption.

WebP for instance, he said, makes online images less bulky by significantly reducing photo and graphic sizes, websites loading faster and giving users a better experience.

“WebP is estimated to reduce JPEG/PNG formats by 25-35% compression,” he asserted, reiterating that these are some of the things needed to be incorporated into the strategy for web analytics by online mediapreneurs, so as to grow their businesses.