Population: The homeless and mentally deranged are not left out – NPC

Population: The homeless and mentally deranged are not left out: The National Population Commission (NPC) has announced that the upcoming 2023 population and

housing census in Nigeria will include the mentally-deranged, homeless people, and every living being

in the country. The announcement was made by Prince Diran Iyantan, the NPC Federal Commissioner

representing Ondo State, during a one-day capacity-building workshop for the 2023 population and

housing census publicity committee in Akure. Iyantan also assured Nigerians that the census would

have at least a 98% success rate.

Population: The homeless and mentally deranged are not left out: the census

The committee was deemed one of the most crucial to the census exercise’s success, as the public’s

psyche can often lead to reluctance to subscribe to government programs. Therefore, the purpose of

the workshop was to enhance the committee members’ capacity to deliver on their mandates and

not to undermine their professionalism. The Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, assembled

the committee

with seasoned professionals to ensure a seamless exercise in the state.

One significant innovation in the 2023 census is its digitization, which is in line with UN recommendations.

Mr. Oluyemi Falusi, the State Director of NPC, noted that this would facilitate faster processes,

reduce error,

track progress, ensure efficiency, and ensure prompt publication of results, among others.

The training,

recruiting, deployment, conduct, analysis, and publication processes for the census exercise

are all fully digitized. Additionally, there will be a 5-tier strategy deployed for quality assurance,

and a robust monitoring and

evaluation system has been set up. There will also be a call center and situation room in the state to

assess the exercise’s daily progress.

the emphasis

The Head of Census Department in the state, Dr. Olufunbi Olowookere, emphasized that census was

needed for economic and socio-political planning and implementation of government policies.

She explained that the population figures in Nigeria had been on estimation and postulations,

making

it crucial to conduct the 2023 population and housing census. Data from the exercise could be used

by experts in the health, agriculture, business, education, and other sectors. The Head of Public Affairs

Department in the state, Mrs. Santos Odunayo, also noted that journalists in the state had been trained

to improve professional media content to inform, educate, enhance acceptability, and refute negative

perceptions and criticisms of the exercise.

the committee

In attendance at the workshop were the Chairman of the Ondo State House of Assembly Committee on Information, Mr. Olugbenga Omole, the Ondo State NUJ Chairman, Mr. Leke Adegbite, and the State

Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Father Anselm Ologunwa.

With the upcoming 2023 population and housing census, Nigeria hopes to obtain an accurate

count of its population, which will facilitate informed decision-making and planning for the nation’s development.