FG Estimates N869bn For 2023 Census, Seeks Financial Aid

The Federal Government has totalled the fund needed for the conduct of the 2023 population and housing census as N869bn.

Investors King reports that Nigerians and organisations have been called upon to donate N327.2bn out of the estimated cost as the government already made provision for N291.5bn.

The Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Clem Agba, during a dialogue with partners for the census in Abuja on Monday, stated that the FG plans to set up a basket fund to collect donations.

Agba noted that the basket fund will be coordinated by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) who will provide technical and financial support to the National Population Commission (NPC).

He appealed to well-meaning citizens and private sectors to either donate cash or essential materials needed for the national census.

The minister gave the breakdown of the estimated cost; “The total requirement for the census (including post census activities) is N869bn ($1.88bn): census requirement – N626bn ($1.36bn) which is about $6 per capita (just slightly above the threshold of up to $5 per capita); Post-Census (up to 2025) is N243bn ($527m).

“So far, the government has committed N291.5bn ($632m) to the census, making it 46 per cent of total funding for the census. An additional (immediate) sum of N327.2bn ($709.9m) is required to complete the census.”

Agba stated that the national headcount was scheduled to hold in 2022 but was shifted to March, 2023, adding that there is a recommendation for it to be moved to May 2023.

He recalled that the last census was done in 2006 and the next ought to be held in 2016 as recommended by the United Nations for Decennial census.

In her remarks, the Resident Representative, UNFPA, Ms Ulla Mueller, harped on the need to take the census seriously to stop guessing the present population of the country.

She stated that UNFPA will support the census exercise financially and technically to the tune of $10m.

Also, the Chairman, Heirs Holdings Group and Founder, The Tony Elumelu Foundation, Tony Elumelu, on behalf of the Organised Private Sector and African Philanthropic Organisations spoke on the urgent need for the census to accurately plan based on the needs of the citizens to boost the nation’s development.

“For me, this task is critical to our country’s future – if we do not know our population, we cannot properly plot our developmental path, our economic growth, our society’s goals. Credible demographic data is of profound importance for the public and private sectors alike.  We all know we live in a data-driven world.

“The upcoming census is a significant milestone in Nigeria’s development, as it provides an opportunity to collect accurate and reliable data on the country’s population and housing, which will serve as a vital tool for policymakers, private sector actors, and civil society organisations,” he said.