Emma Okonji
Nigeria witnessed a drop in domain name registration and renewal in the last three months, as registration figures dropped from 184,341 in November 2021 to 178,097 in January 2022, latest statistics released by the Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NIRA), the body responsible for hosting and domesticating domain name in Nigeria has revealed.
According to the statistics obtained from NIRA’s official website, although there was a slight growth in the total number of domain name registration, renewal and restoration from 2019 to 2022, the figures dropped from 184,341 in November 2021 to 178,097 in January 2022.
From the statistics, Nigeria recorded a total of 146,352 for domain name registration, renewal and restoration in November 2019, and in November 2020, the figure increased to 172,712, while in November 2021, the figure increased again to 184,341. In December 2019, the total number of registration, renewal and restoration was 147,461, and in December 2020, the figure rose to 175,071, while in December 2021, the figure increased to181,532.
In January 2020, Nigeria recorded a total of 150,111 domain name registration, renewal and restoration, but in January 2021, the figure rose to 178,230, and dropped slightly to 178,079 in January 2022.
Analysis of the data revealed that there had been a slight increase in the number of registration, renewal and restoration for the dot ng domain name, which is Nigeria’s identity in the cyber space, from 2019 to 2021.
THISDAY however discovered a drop in registration, renewal and restoration in the last three months, from November 2021 to January 2022, where the figures dropped from 184,341 in November 2021 to 182,532 in December 2021 and a further slide to 178,079 in January 2022.
Giving reasons for the drop in the figures in the last three months from November 2021 to January 2022, the President of NiRA, Mr. Mohammed Rudman, told THISDAY, that registration actually increased from 2019 to 2020, but explained that there was a drop in 2021 and 2022 because of the effect of COVID-19.
According to him, “In 2020, we experienced an increase in the number of registration for country code Top Level Domain Name (ccTLD) but in 2021, the number of registration dropped because of the effect of COVID-19 pandemic. The issue is that all those that registered in 2020, could not use the domain name in that same 2020 because of the pandemic and as such they did not renew their registration in 2021 and new registration also dropped in 2021 for ccTLD.”
Rudman however said the drop in domain name registration 2021 was not peculiar to the Nigerian market because it was a global issue caused by the effect of COVID-19. A lot of ccTLD domain name registration dropped in 2021 globally, the only increase in domain name registration was in the area of second level domain name like dot gov, dot ng, and dot com.
“So for Nigeria, the reason for the drop in domain name registration was due to the effect of COVID-19, coupled with the tough economic situation that is affecting individuals and organisations in the country,” Rudman said.
Asked if the federal government policy on the use of digital technologies, that geared towards domesticating dot ng domain name among government agencies, Will help increase domain name registration and renewal in the country, Rudman said: “The government policy domesticate dot ng domain name across government parastatals, has helped to increase adoption of domain names by 80 per cent within the government circles. What government is trying to do with that policy is to domesticate domain name usage in government parastatals because most government officials use private email addresses like yahoo, while abandoning the official email addresses that has dot ng.”
So I think government’s move is a right step in the right direction, because if government leads the way in domesticating dot ng domain name, then the general public will follow. So it is a welcome development because it will help to increase the domestication of dot ng domain name in Nigeria, “Rudman further said.
