The Senate has pledged to work towards the conduct of a national population census before the present administration ends in 2027.
During a budget defence meeting with Nasir Isa Kwarra, the chairman of the National Population Commission, this pledge was restated.
During a budget defence meeting with Nasir Isa Kwarra, the chairman of the National Population Commission, this pledge was restated.
“We will not rest on our oars until a census is conducted before this administration ends,” stated Senator Abdul Ningi, the chairman of the Committee on National Identity Management and Population.
He revealed that the Senate was preparing to meet with President Bola Tinubu to stress the urgency of conducting the census in 2025. “We will soon engage the president on this matter and formally write to him through the Senate president, highlighting the need for a census this year,” he said.
Additionally, Senator Olalere Oyewunmi emphasized how crucial it is to exert pressure on the president to give the census top priority.
In a similar vein, Senator Diket Plang bemoaned the nation’s dependence on population estimates, which makes planning ineffective.
“It’s disheartening that we are still working with estimates in this modern age. How can we plan without knowing the exact population? It’s sad that 2024 passed without achieving 90 percent performance. According to him, we need to know our population, urging for a definitive count by 2025,” he said.
The head of the population commission clarified that because they intend to include a biometric component in the process, the census budget has not yet been decided.
“Before we meet with the president, we want to test the biometric component and include it in this year’s budget. In contrast to the traditional method, the President favours a biometric methodology for the headcount,” he stated.
