Major telecom operators MTN Nigeria and Airtel have resumed SIM swap services after recent disruptions left millions of subscribers unable to access essential SIM-related functions.
MTN and Airtel announced the update on Sunday, attributing the outage to issues with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC)’s verification platform.
In a post shared via its MTN Nigeria Support account on X, the company stated:
“SIM swaps have now resumed. We can confirm that NIMC services are fully operational and appreciate their support in the migration to a new platform for NIN verification services for the telecommunications industry.”
The telco also acknowledged the earlier disruption and advised affected customers to visit service centres for support.
Airtel Nigeria also issued a clarification on its social media platform, stating:
“The NIMC PORTAL is up and running. We regret earlier messages suggesting otherwise. We are sorry for the delay and are addressing the issue. We’ll update customers once resolved. We value our partnership with the NIMC and value your patience.”
At this time, other major telecom operators such as Glo and 9mobile are yet to issue formal announcements regarding the restoration of SIM-related services.
However, NIMC, via its official X account, has amplified both MTN and Airtel’s updates, further indicating that SIM swap services have resumed across multiple networks.
Both MTN and Airtel have encouraged customers experiencing lingering delays to visit the nearest service centres for prompt assistance, while expressing gratitude for their patience during the downtime.
Inaccessibility of customers to SIM-related services
Earlier in July, millions of telecom subscribers across Nigeria were unable to access SIM-related services, including SIM swaps, replacements, and new activations, due to a nationwide technical disruption.
The issue was traced to a platform migration directed by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), which temporarily affected access to the NIN verification system used by telecom operators.
The migration formed part of ongoing efforts to strengthen the security and efficiency of Nigeria’s identity infrastructure.
The NIN verification system plays a crucial role in confirming identities during SIM registration, in line with the federal government’s SIM and NIN integration policy.
After several deadline extensions, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in September 2024 concluded the SIM and NIN linkage exercise, which led to the disconnection of all unlinked SIM cards.
Since then, providing a valid NIN has become mandatory at the point of SIM registration, meaning no SIM can be activated if the verification system is unavailable.