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The Senate has taken a major step toward overhauling Nigeria’s emergency response system with the consideration of a bill seeking to establish a single, toll-free national emergency number for all citizens. The proposed legislation, titled A Bill for an Act to Establish the National Emergency Toll Service (NETS), passed second reading during Tuesday’s plenary.
The sponsor of the bill, Senator Abdulaziz Musa Yar’Adua (APC, Katsina Central), said the goal is to replace Nigeria’s multiple emergency helplines with one unified three-digit number, likely 112, subject to recommendations at the public hearing. He noted that the current system—featuring different numbers for the police, fire service, ambulance services, domestic violence desks, child protection units and disaster agencies—has created widespread confusion during emergencies.
Yar’Adua explained that the reform would ensure that “calls and text messages will be routed automatically to the nearest emergency response centre,” adding that the system would take advantage of Nigeria’s nearly 90 per cent mobile phone penetration to improve accessibility.
Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin described the bill as a timely intervention, saying it would “significantly improve public safety once implemented.”
The bill was thereafter referred to the Senate Committee on Communications, with a directive to submit its report within four weeks.
