The Chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC), Alhaji Nasir Kwarra has said that there is no going back on the conduct of the 2023 Population and Housing Census.
Last week, the NPC announced a national census for between 29 March and 2 April, which is 17 years after the last exercise.
Kwarra assured that all requirements have been put in place to ensure the success of the exercise and urged all stakeholders, civil society organisations, development partners, and governments at all levels to give maximum support to the exercise to ensure its success.
At the Benue State Stakeholders Summit on the Population and Housing Census, organised by the NPC in collaboration with the state government, the NPC Chairman reiterated that the commission would conduct a technology-driven exercise to achieve the best outcome.
He noted that “preparation for the conduct of the 2023 census has reached a point of no return; we have reached a point where we cannot jettison the exercise.
“We have done the digital mapping and we have done the census pre-test and everything was successful. We, therefore, want to assure Nigerians that the figures that will come out at the end of the exercise will be the exact figures”.
Kwarra commended President Muhammadu Buhari who, he said, is committed to having the country conduct a successful population census, despite the challenges facing the country.
He also commended Governor Samuel Ortom for supporting the exercise, saying his commitment clearly showed that the Governor understood that demographic data was vital and important to the development of a state. “That is why I urge Benue people to present themselves to be counted”, he said.
Also, Ortom, who declared the summit open, said the meeting availed traditional rulers and stakeholders of necessary information that would help them support the exercise better.
While urging the people of the state to deemphasise politics and support the conduct of the exercise to ensure its success, the Governor said: “The people must braze up to ensure the success of the exercise in Benue state because census plays important roles during several considerations and posterity will not forgive us if it is discovered that while here we did not play our roles well and we are shortchanged. So census is a serious matter and should be treated as such”.
Also, the NPC Federal Commissioner for Benue State, Mrs Patricia Kupchi said the commission was set to deliver the best population census to Nigerians.
She noted that “the conduct of population census is a huge exercise therefore there is the need for all stakeholders to join hands to ensure its success. On our part, we will conduct an accurate, reliable, and acceptable census in Benue state. And to achieve that the Commission is carrying out digital, transparent, and scientific preparation for the census.
“And the census is being conducted in three stages, namely, pre-enumeration, enumeration, and post-enumeration stages”.
Those who spoke at the event included the Tor Tiv, HRM Ochiviri Prof. James Ayatse; the Ochi’Idoma, HRM Dr. Elaigwu Odogbo; the State Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Rev. Akpen Leva; representatives of Local Government chairmen. They promised to work closely with the NPC to ensure the success of the coming census.
