Nigeria’s long-awaited national housing and population census has faced further delays as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu turned down the ₦942 billion budget plan proposed by the National Population Commission (NPC), citing the need for a more cost-effective strategy. During a meeting with NPC officials at the State House, the president stressed the need to cut spending while ensuring that the census is carried out effectively. He proposed alternative cost-cutting measures, such as deploying National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members to help with data collection, which would drastically cut personnel expenses.
He directed the establishment of a committee to review the budget in light of the government’s financial situation before seeking external funding from development partners. The president reiterated his commitment to carrying out a reliable and technologically sophisticated census, insisting that biometric capturing, including voice and facial recognition, should be at the forefront of the data collection process. Tinubu also assigned the National Identification Management Commission (NIMC) the responsibility of participating in the census review to guarantee a smooth integration with national identification data.
Timing and methodology of the exercise remain uncertain.
Despite prior spending on biometric technologies and digital mapping, Nigeria has been having difficulty conducting a national census since 2006. The procedure has been periodically hampered by logistical challenges, financial limitations, and insecurity, making it challenging for policymakers to gather precise population numbers for efficient governance. Tinubu emphasized the significance of conducting a successful census and the need for accurate demographic data for national planning, employment policies, agriculture, and resource allocation. However, the administration remains uncertain about the timing and methodology of the exercise, especially with regard to how to reliably collect data on internally displaced people and Nigeria’s extremely mobile populace.
Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, has stated that inter-agency meetings are ongoing to optimize the use of available data from various government institutions, including the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), NIMC, the NPC, and telecommunications companies. This cooperative endeavor is to increase data accuracy while lowering expenses. NPC Chairman Nasir Kwarra, meanwhile, verified that the Central Bank of Nigeria has acquired 760,000 tablets intended for the census process.
Political transition and financial constraints delay the 2023 census.
He further disclosed that discussions will commence with development partners for financial support once President Tinubu gives his approval to the revised census timeframe. The Tinubu administration’s emphasis on efficiency and cost reduction raises concerns about when the long-overdue population count will eventually take place, as Nigeria struggles to perform its first digital census. While efforts are being made to shorten the process, the country will await final decisions about funding and implementation. The 2023 Population and Housing Census in Nigeria, initially scheduled for May 3–7, 2023, was postponed due to budgetary constraints and political transitions.
Former President Muhammadu Buhari had postponed the exercise days before the formal transfer of power to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government. The decision was influenced by a change in government, worries about financial availability, and the need for a more stable climate to conduct a credible census. Initially in 2023, the National Population Commission (NPC) estimated that the census would cost approximately ₦869 billion ($1.88 billion), but the government only committed ₦291.5 billion ($632 million) to the census, making up for just 46 percent of total funding.
Related Article: Identity management and governance in Nigeria
Notwithstanding its delay, the framework for the 2023 census had already been established. The NPC has previously mapped out all 774 local government areas in Nigeria, creating digital enumeration areas to ensure comprehensive coverage. This was a component of initiatives to use Geographic Information System (GIS) Technology to modernize the census process. The commission had begun training over 800,000 supervisors and enumerators expected to conduct the census. Unlike previous censuses, the 2023 exercise was designed to be entirely digital as census personnel were to capture data in real-time using portable devices to reduce errors, eliminating paper-based enumeration.