The Federal Government of Nigeria has approved the postponement of the 2023 National population and housing census.
This comes as the National Population Commission (NPC) explained that its decision to postpone the 2023 census exercise was to allow adequate participation of the incoming administration.
Lai Mohammed, Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture, said in a statement on Saturday in Abuja that the exercise, earlier scheduled for March 29, 2023, was postponed to a date to be determined by the incoming administration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The Minister stated that President Muhammadu Buhari approved the postponement of the exercise after meeting with some members of the Federal Executive Council and the Chairman of the National Population Commission and his team.
Mohammed also disclosed that the Federal Executive Council approved the sum of N2.8 billion for the procurement of some softwares to be used for the conduct of the census.
The Minister, who doubles as the Chairman of the National Publicity and Advocacy Committee on the 2023 Census, said the meeting was held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Friday.
He said the president also directed the commission to continue with preparations for the conduct of the census in order to sustain the gains already recorded and provide the basis for the incoming administration to consolidate on these achievements.
Mohammed said those present at the meeting included Mr Abubakar Malami, Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice; Mrs Zainab Ahmed, Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning and himself.Others were Mr Clem Agba, the Minister of State, Budget and National Planning and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha.
The NPC, in explaining the reason for the postponement of the exercise, said there was a need for the incoming administration to be abreast of the processes used in the collection of the census data.
Dr. Isiaka Yahaya, the Commission’s Director of Public Affairs Department, explained that the main objective towards conducting the census is not just to collect data, but to also ensure that the data is used for planning purposes.
He added: “If that is the assumption, it means the administration that would use this data should be part of the collection of the data. It won’t be wise that at a certain stage when they come in, we should just throw the data at them.
“That would affect their confidence in the data. But now, we have gone far in the preparations, we are almost at the tail end. It is also good for the administration that will use the data both at the National and state level to know how the census would be conducted. If they participate in that process, I am sure that they will have faith using the data. This is one major reason for the postponement.”