Nigeria has begun moves to integrate its new National Digital Alphanumeric Postcode System into everyday digital services, with the Federal Government urging businesses, developers and innovators to create applications and services around the system.

Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, said the launch of the national postcode system represents only the initial stage of the initiative, with its wider impact expected to emerge as the system becomes integrated into commerce, service delivery and other areas of daily life.

Tijani said his ministry will collaborate with the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST), government agencies, businesses and members of the technology community to incorporate the postcode system into existing products and services.

As part of the integration drive, the government has provided an API that organisations can use to connect the postcode system to their platforms. Organisations seeking access must first create an account, provide Know Your Business (KYB) documentation and request the appropriate level of API access.

Once approved, organisations will receive staging tokens to support development and testing. Where necessary, this will be followed by User Acceptance Testing involving NIPOST’s technical and compliance teams before organisations are granted access to the production environment.

The minister identified several areas where the alphanumeric postcode could be applied, including commerce, transportation, healthcare, agriculture, emergency response and community services.

He also encouraged developers and innovators to explore applications for the system and propose new products and services that could use the alphanumeric postcode across the identified sectors.

Source: techafricanews