The National Population Commission has announced that the country’s population growth rate is 3.2 percent, based on an estimated 216 million people.
The News Agency of Nigeria stated that this was revealed on Wednesday at a lecture hosted by the Commission and the Institute of Development Studies, University of Nigeria Enugu Campus by the NPC Federal commissioner for Enugu State, Mr. Ejike Eze.
Nigeria, he claimed, had one of the fastest-rising populations in the world, necessitating regular censuses in order to properly organize development initiatives and that the absence of a population census in Nigeria for the previous 17 years had resulted in a knowledge gap.
“This is due to the fact that the 2006 census’s statistics have become less valuable for planning purposes,” he said.
According to Eze, with the designation of the 774 existing Local Government Areas in Nigeria, the preparations for the 2023 national census have proceeded to a new level.
“There is also a need to make sure that efforts to reduce poverty are implemented and guided by current data gathered from the census of 2023.
“This will enhance the execution of programs that target the most vulnerable people and guarantee that no one is left behind,” the speaker claimed.
The commissioner explained that the commission purposefully decided to leave religion and ethnicity off the questionnaire for the 2023 census due to the sensitive nature of the subjects.
He continued by saying that the main objective of the questionnaire was to produce data that would aid in the planning of sustainable development.
