FG Begins Rollout Plan for 112 National Emergency Number
The Federal Government has begun moves to operationalise 112 as Nigeria’s single, toll-free national emergency number, aimed at providing citizens with easier and faster access to emergency services across the country.
The development followed a directive by Vice-President Kashim Shettima at a stakeholders’ meeting on the National Emergency Number 112 Project held in Abuja on Tuesday, September 8, 2026.
Shettima directed relevant government agencies to develop a comprehensive operational roadmap and standard operating procedures for the nationwide implementation of the emergency number.
Consequently, the government constituted a committee comprising the Nigeria Police Force, Nigerian Communications Commission, National Emergency Management Agency, Federal Road Safety Corps and other relevant agencies to finalise the framework.
The framework will subsequently be presented to the National Economic Council for consideration and formal endorsement.
The NEC had earlier approved 112 as Nigeria’s universal toll-free emergency number, replacing the multiple emergency lines operated independently by various government agencies.
The initiative is designed to reduce delays and bureaucratic bottlenecks by providing Nigerians with a single point of contact for urgent assistance during emergencies, including security incidents, fires, road crashes, medical emergencies and disasters.
Speaking at the meeting, Shettima urged members of the committee to draw on international best practices while developing the operational framework.
He also tasked the stakeholders with ensuring that the initiative moves beyond policy approval to actual implementation.
“Let’s make progress so that whatever time we have spent here is worth spending,” the Vice-President said.
Shettima assured stakeholders that the Federal Government would provide the resources required to implement the project, adding that adequate funding would be made available once the initiative reaches the implementation stage.
The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Rilwan Disu, expressed the full support of the Nigeria Police Force for the adoption of 112 as the country’s unified emergency number.
Disu described the initiative as an important step towards providing Nigerians with a simple and reliable way to seek emergency assistance.
He noted that during incidents such as armed attacks, road crashes, fire outbreaks, medical emergencies and kidnapping, victims or witnesses are often faced with the challenge of identifying the appropriate agency to contact.
According to him, the 112 system would provide a single access point through which emergency calls could be received and promptly routed to the relevant response agency.
Earlier, the Personal Assistant to the President on e-Governance in the Office of the Vice-President, Lydia Aina, said Nigeria’s emergency response system currently involves multiple agencies, platforms and jurisdictions.
She said the fragmented structure sometimes affects the coordination and speed of emergency responses.
Aina explained that the government intends to transition from the existing fragmented arrangement to a coordinated and eventually fully integrated national emergency response system.
She stressed that the success of the 112 initiative would depend not only on the emergency number but also on the personnel, agencies, operational standards and technological systems required to make it effective.
“Our job now is to turn it into an actual working programme with milestones,” she said.
According to her, six immediate priorities have been identified, beginning with governance and a clear delineation of responsibilities among participating agencies.
Other stakeholders at the meeting pledged their support for the initiative, including the Director-General of NEMA, Zubaida Umar; Corps Marshal of the FRSC, Shehu Mohammed; and Director-General of the National Orientation Agency, Lanre Issa-Onilu.
The Federal Government expects the unified emergency number to improve coordination among response agencies, reduce delays and make it easier for Nigerians to obtain urgent assistance.
When fully implemented nationwide, the 112 system is expected to serve as a single gateway connecting citizens to the police, fire services, medical responders, road safety authorities, disaster management agencies and other emergency services.
The initiative is consequently being positioned as a major step towards establishing a faster, more coordinated and citizen-focused emergency response system in Nigeria.
