A CENSUS is the procedure of systematically calculating, acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses include the census of agriculture, and other censuses such as the traditional culture, business, supplies, and traffic censuses.
Therefore, this column is not enough to properly highlight the importance of Population and Housing Census. To delineate but a few; Population census gives the government an idea of the different populations in different parts of the country which will in turn aid the government in the adequate provision of social amenities like water, electricity, roads, and hospital which is beneficial to the citizens of the country.
Accurate census data are critical for developing accurate assessments of economic well-being for the nation as a whole and help the Government in proper economic planning.
Population census will provide data that can help estimate or even forecast the number of schools required, out-of-school children, percentage of literacy in the country, quality of educational curriculum.
Census provides information on the healthcare needs of the population. All health institutions have been mapped and will therefore help to know how well Nigerians are serviced, what type of service and areas that are not serviced for better development.
I can go on and on but now is not the time to push for an adequate comprehension of housing and population census. So, I will leave that for now.
The national census was last conducted in Nigeria in 2006 and the 2023 census, which was scheduled for May 2023, was postponed by the National Population Commission; The data collected in the 2006 Population Census is far from reality in 2023 and cannot validly form a solid base for the formation of national economic policies that will aid the federal government in administering viable national planning.
We all applauded the government, when in 2020, former President Muhammadu Buhari approved the disbursement of N10 billion to the National Population Commission (NPC), for the continuation of the Enumeration Area Demarcation (EAD) in the remaining 546 Local Government Areas (LGA) of the country.
The then president approved an additional N45 billion, which is to be included in the 2021 Budget for the completion of the exercise, as part of the preparations for the next census.
The NPC implemented the exercise in phases due to paucity of funds, the 10th Phase of the exercise was expected to start on October 5th and end on October 29th, 2020 with training and fieldwork to be conducted in 33 LGAs spread across 25 States and the FCT. A total of 228 LGAs were successfully demarcated across the 36 States and FCT in the previous 9 phases.
The former President had graciously followed this up with a further approval of an additional N45 billion to be included in the 2021 Budget for completing the exercise as part of preparations for the census.
And then from nowhere came the postponement. With all that money spent, the exercise was postponed.
Even the NPC admitted to having spent two hundred billion Naira (N200, 000, 000, 000) as part of the eight hundred billion Naira (N800, 000, 000, 000) budgeted for the planning mid-execution of the 2023 population and housing census.
And the commission had stated that if the population and housing census fails to take place within 12 months, the information gathered across the country would become stale, a waste of resources and the country would have to increase costs of gathering fresh information when the population will take place at a later date.
As we waited, the Chairman of the Commission, Alhaji Nasir Isa Kwarra, expressed readiness to conduct a population and housing census during a visit to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on July 6, 2023 and it was to the joy of many Nigerians when President Tinubu appointed and requested the confirmation of the nomination of the 19-member committee of Commission.
But to the shock of Nigerians last week, the Senate Committee on Census revealed that there was no provision for the scheduled 2024 population and housing census in the budget proposal for the National Population Commission. And this simply means, there wont be Census in 2024.
The Senate committee further stated that If the census is not conducted the money spent on the preparation for the census will go down the drain and it is a humongous amount of money, over N200 billion already spent in instalments.
To say I was livid is an understatement, because for the government to relieve the stress of its people by supporting the poor and vulnerable, the government needs to know and understand the data of the nation. How do you plan without knowing the number of people in the country? The Last census was in 2006, and knowing the numbers will help direct funds and palliatives to the people in need.
The NPC proposed to conduct a census in 2016, but this was not released due to some extraneous factors. I repeat, understanding data is key. The government needs citizens to help succeed no matter how powerful it is.
It’s a good thing that the House of Representatives is concerned and called for an upward revision of the 2024 budget to enable the commission to fulfill its mandate effectively while waiting for approval of additional funds. If these funds are not approved and the Census does not take place, the earlier funds will turn out to be wasted allocation.
Some facilitators were already paid after their train the trainer scheme, the payment will mean their share of the national cake. And that is not a good thing for the nation.
Moreover, this NPC scheme will help a lot of unemployed people who have applied. A lot of people are busting in anger and frustration. Why the back and forth?
Kabara, is a writer and public commentator. Her syndicated column, Voice, appears on News Point Nigeria newspaper on Mondays. She can be reached on hafceekay01@gmail.com