House Urges FG to Conduct National Population Census in 2020

House Urges FG to Conduct National Population Census in 2020

Adedayo Akinwale ín Abuja

The House of Representatives has called on the federal government to provide necessary logistics for the conduct of a national census in 2020 as a way of ending the uncertainties surrounding Nigeria’s actual population.

The House also urged the National Population Commission (NPC) to come up with a feasible time table for the conduct a National Census not later than year 2020.

The House decision was sequel to the adoption of a motion moved by Hon. Ademorin Kuye at the plenary yesterday.

He said that the holding of a population census is an important national assignment because its figures are critical for national planning and it is for this reason, among others, that most countries of the world carry out this exercise once every ten years.

Kuye noted that without a census, and an accurate data of the number of people in a given country, no government can provide adequately for its citizens as government requires data to know the number of children being born, the number of schools and hospitals that would be needed, how many workers are in a given town and how many foreigners are in the country, for proper provision of infrastructural facilities.

The lawmaker stressed that most times, Nigeria’s population is predicated on projected figures provided by foreign organisations like the United Nations, thus making planning extremely difficult.

Kuye noted that the last national census was conducted in 2006, adding that until it becomes mandatory to conduct census at given intervals like elections, Nigeria would continue to have delays in organising national census.

The lawmaker expressed worry that if adequate measures are not put in place where population census is conducted periodically at least once every 10 years, Nigeria would be lacking in the statistical data of its citizenry either politically or economically.

The House therefore resolved “to set up an Ad-hoc Committee to liaise with NPC, the Ministry of Finance, Budget and Planning and the National Bureau of Statistics to work out modalities on how to conduct a census in 2020 and also to liaise with other foreign donors such as UNFPA, EU, USAID, UNESCO, AU, etc. for necessary support for the exercise.”

“Also urge the federal government to provide necessary logistics for the conduct of a national census in 2020 as a way of ending the uncertainties surrounding Nigeria’s actual population.

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