Citizenship in Nigeria is regulated by Chapter III of the 1999 Constitution. There is no implementing legislation, since the 1960 and 1961 Nigerian Citizenship Acts were repealed in 1974 when the original jus soli framework was amended; in 1979 a new constitution established the current framework.
The law does not discriminate against women in terms of their ability to pass their citizenship to their children, but does restrict their ability to pass nationality to their non-citizen spouses. The law fails to include a saving provision to ensure access to nationality for children of unknown parents or children born in Nigeria who would otherwise be stateless. In relation to those who became citizens at independence, the constitution requires that those born in Nigeria became Nigerian provided that one parent or grandparent belonged to “a community indigenous to Nigeria”, without defining what “indigenous” meant.
The question of belonging to an “indigenous community” also has importance in relation to broader rights of participation and the rights of Nigerian citizens within the different states of the federation. Rules relating to public appointments require respect for the “federal character” of Nigeria, with reference to the state of which a person is an “indigene”. Being labelled a non-indigene can lead to higher costs for education, inability to access state jobs and other forms of discrimination.
The decision of the International Court of Justice transferring sovereignty of the Bakassi peninsula from Nigeria to Cameroon has also left a large number of people at risk of statelessness, including former residents of the peninsula who have relocated to Nigeria.
By Gift ChapiOdekina, Abuja The House of Representatives on Thursday passed for second reading a bill seeking to return Nigeria to a parliamentary system of government. The bill is among 31 constitutional amendment bills that scaled second reading during plenary, […]
The Citizenship by Investment Bill passed its second reading on Wednesday, aiming to grant Nigerian citizenship to foreign investors who meet specified financial thresholds or invest in critical sectors of the economy. The House of Representatives has advanced a bill […]
Introduction No document is more critical to free movement of people across international borders, than that small booklet commonly called a ‘passport’. Without it, a person is without an identity – at least outside his or her country of origin. […]
By Gift Habib The African Diaspora Union has urged Nigeria to grant citizenship to African descendants in the diaspora who trace their ancestry back to Nigeria. The President of AFRIDU, Prof. Chidiebere Ogbu, made this appeal at a press conference […]
The National Assembly, as part of the moves to strengthen the regulatory function of the National Identity Management Commission, has embarked on repealing and enacting the NIMC Act No. 23. The NIMC Bill represents a significant legislative endeavour to enhance […]
By Margaret Ebeshi, Abuja The African Diaspora Union (AFRIDU), has appealed to the Nigerian government to consider the option of granting citizenship for African Descendants who were victims of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja […]
Selected extracts relevant to Africa: Highlights The Republic of Congo officially joined the 1954 and 1961 Statelessness Conventions, fulfilling a commitment made at the 2019 High-Level Segment on Statelessness. Sao Tome and Principe’s President signed a decree for the country’s […]
By Ayang Macdonald The National Identity Management Commission of Nigeria (NIMC) has clarified that only one new digital ID card with multiple functions will be introduced in the coming days. This information is contained in a factsheet posted by the […]
By Ayang Macdonald There’ve been mixed reactions in Nigeria after the federal government unveiled plans to introduce a new multi-purpose national digital ID card, with some describing it as a duplicative effort and a waste of resources. In a statement […]
Hussain, Taofik Oyewo (2023) “Statelessness in the Bakassi Peninsula: A Humanitarian Crisis in the Making,” Journal of African Conflicts and Peace Studies: Vol. 5: Iss. 2. The Bakassi Peninsula is a resource-rich region straddling the border between Cameroon and Nigeria. […]
By Ayang McDonald A former Chairman of Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Attahiru Jega, has highlighted the need for the country to thoroughly clean up its voter’s registration database if it must effectively fight electoral fraud. According to […]
By Emmanuel K Dogbevi Applying for and getting a travel document such as a passport in most African countries can be a traumatic experience for most citizens. Despite advances in technology, which normally should improve service delivery in particular for […]