NIS launches nationwide drive to turn 2025 migration policy into stronger borders
The Comptroller-General of Immigration, Kemi Nanna Nandap, has flagged off the nationwide sensitization and workshop on Nigeria’s validated National Migration Policy (2025) for its officers in Minna, describing the exercise
The Comptroller-General of Immigration, Kemi Nanna Nandap, has flagged off the nationwide sensitization and workshop on Nigeria’s validated National Migration Policy (2025) for its officers in Minna, describing the exercise as a strategic capacity-building drive to equip officers for effective implementation.
Delivering the keynote address at the opening session, Nandap said the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) played a key role as a major stakeholder in the policy’s validation because migration dynamics have grown more complex and fast-changing.
Nandap, who was represented by the Niger state Comptroller of Immigration Service, Hope Maduka, highlighted recent NIS reforms, which include the e-Visa regime, contactless passport application system, e-border dissolution infrastructure, passport personalization centre, and the ECOWAS National Biometric Identity Card (ENBIC) as practical steps toward modernising migration governance and bolstering national security.
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"Nigeria’s first comprehensive National Migration Policy was adopted in 2015 to establish a coordinated framework for safe, orderly, and regular migration. The 2025 edition builds on that foundation, addressing new realities, enhancing inter-agency coordination, and aligning the country with global standards, including the Sustainable Development Goals and the Global Compact for Migration.
"The updated policy continues to treat borders as both the first line of defence against human trafficking, migrant smuggling, terrorism and transnational crime, and as gateways for legitimate trade, investment and tourism", she said.
The training programme had five clear objectives, which included explaining the concept and importance of the National Migration Policy; to enable officers to apply its provisions in real operational scenarios; to deepen understanding of the relationship between policy, law, and enforcement; to prepare participants to effectively train other officers at the command level; and to promote uniformity in migration management practices nationwide.
Nandap told officers of the training that the policy’s success hinges on implementation, “Your understanding and application of the policy provisions are essential. The nationwide sensitization is therefore designed as a strategic capacity-building initiative so that every immigration operative internalises the guidelines and translates them into improved operational performance", she said.
She reminded participants that the NIS mandate centres on border governance and migration management, but effective delivery requires sustained inter-agency collaboration and a careful balance between security and the facilitation of lawful movement.
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The policy, she added, positions migration as a driver of national development, security, and international cooperation while remaining humane and responsive to Nigeria’s priorities.
The Comptroller-General urged full engagement in the workshops so that officers can convert the knowledge gained into operational excellence and help build a migration system that is secure, efficient, and aligned with national goals.
She said that the sensitization exercise will reach all NIS commands and would mark the official rollout of the 2025 policy’s implementation phase.
