Nigeria adopts 3-word addresses.

Nigeria’s postal operator, NIPOST, has announced the adoption of the innovative global addressing system -what3words.

According to reports, Nigeria is the seventh country in the world to adopt what3words and the third in Africa. The system is already used for mail distribution in Mongolia, Saint Martin, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Tonga and Solomon Islands. Nigeria is the largest economy in Africa with about 184 million inhabitants, it is the most populous country on the continent and the seventh in the world.

Nigeria’s poor addressing system means that only 20% of its inhabitants receive mail at home. 79% of households and businesses can not receive deliveries on their doorstep and the remaining 1% receive their mail using one of the 478 000 mailboxes across the country. A postal code system exists, but only 5% of the mail uses it correctly, hindering the efforts of NIPOST to improve its quality of service.

An addressing solution

Determined to improve this situation, NIPOST has set an ambitious target of increasing home delivery to 70% over the next 2 years and 90% by 2020 through the Mail for Every House (MEHI – “home delivery for every household”) and the adoption of what3words. This innovative global addressing system has divided the world into 57 000 billion square meters of 3 mx 3 m, each with a unique address of 3 words. This means that every home and business in Nigeria has a simple and accurate address, easy to remember and use.

Available in 14 languages, with many others under development, what3words is used in more than 170 countries by governments, postal services, logistics companies, emergency services and NGOs, as well as individuals. These addresses are more accurate than traditional postal addresses, simpler than landmarks and easier to communicate and remember than GPS coordinates. The system has built-in error detection and is available through a free mobile application and API integration. The system also works offline without data connection.

“We are very pleased to collaborate with what3words and to have chosen their addressing solution that offers tremendous opportunities,” said Dr. Bisi Adegbuyi, Postmaster General of Nigeria. “Better addressing is essential in NIPOST’s strategy to transform, innovate and deliver more services to the broader population across the country.”

E-commerce potential

Young people represent 62% of the Nigerian population, which is reflected in the significant increase in cross-border electronic commerce in the country; 53612 parcels and packages have been processed in 2016 (about 200 per day), a 70% increase since 2014. At the national level, the e-commerce market currently represents $ 12 billion, but there is still considerable potential for growth. With improved infrastructure, innovation around payment systems and a reliable addressing system, Nigerian e-commerce could be developed on a very large scale.

“With a growing e-commerce ecosystem, Nigeria is a very interesting country to work with,” said Chris Sheldrick, CEO and co-founder of what3words. “Postal services play an essential role in building a strong economy. NIPOST is resolutely forward-looking and is taking steps to modernize and strengthen its capabilities and its range of services. “