NPC to Get FG’s Backing for Next Census, Tinubu Says

The next census will get the federal government’s backing, according to President Bola Tinubu. He spoke on Wednesday at the State House, Abuja, where he launched the Digital Civil Registration and Vital Statistics System and the National Geospatial Data Repository. He did not say when the “next census” would be.

He said the nation’s population is its key asset for development and governance. He said accurate and reliable data on the population’s size, distribution, composition, and characteristics is needed for planning and public service delivery.

He hoped that the first digital population and housing census would provide the nation with useful data for development planning and good governance.

The 2023 census was postponed by ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, who approved a new date to be decided by the Tinubu administration, which came into power on May 29, 2023.

NPC Chairman Nasir Isa Kwarra said in July that Tinubu will announce new dates for the census, which will cost more than the N200bn budgeted for it due to the delay.

The House of Representatives rejected a motion last week asking Tinubu to fix a new date for the census this year because of insecurity. The House also resolved to probe the money spent on the postponed 2023 census by the NPC.