BLS International Services Ltd has won a three-year contract to oversee the identity management services for Nigerians in London, UK.

BLS is an IT services company focused on the government sector.

During the contract period, BLS in partnership with File Solutions Ltd, a data and digital enrollment service company, will support the initiative by the National Identity Management Commission in Nigeria to enrol Nigerian citizens into the national identity database.

The BLS centre in London shall soon issue a national identification number (NIN) and general multi-purpose cards (GMPC) to Nigerian citizens in the diaspora.

“The NIN to Nigerian citizens residing abroad would help them to process all forms of transactions like passport issuance, voter registration, opening a bank account, etc. A dedicated helpline and e-mail support services along with website will soon be available for any queries and tracking purposes. It is estimated that around 205,000 Nigerians live in the UK out of which about 97,000 Nigerians are in London,” BLS said in a statement.

“Our domain expertise and tech-enabled services will help in seamless roll out of the project and making it successful. We are delighted by strengthening our footprint with newer partnerships serving global as well as local client governments,” said Shikhar Aggarwal, joint managing director, BLS International.

BLS has managed similar projects related to identity management and verification for Canadian, Afghanistan, and Egyptian governments. In Canada, BLS is accredited by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to carry out the police background checks; in Afghanistan, the company provides consular services for registration of Afghan nationals in Saudi Arabia and five gulf countries; while in Egypt, it provides Express Movement Certificate to Egyptians who want to travel to Schengen countries and legalization of documents living in the diaspora.