President Bola Tinubu on Monday said he would set up a committee to align the census budget to the government’s present financial realities.
This followed a meeting at the State House, Abuja, where officials of the National Population Commission (NPC) led by the Chairman, Nasir Kwarra, briefed the President.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed details of the meeting in a statement on Monday.
The statement is titled ‘Nigeria moves closer to fresh census, President Tinubu to set up committee’.
Since its last census in November 2006, Nigeria’s housing and population census has faced repeated delays and logistical hurdles since the twilight of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
Although the NPC invested in new technology—such as digital mapping and biometric capture—to enhance accuracy and transparency, issues including inadequate funding, insecurity in certain regions, and the onset of COVID-19 contributed to a series of postponements.
The 2023 census, in particular, was deferred due to overlapping concerns, ranging from budget constraints to political transitions, making it difficult for stakeholders to finalisé preparations before Buhari left office.
Under the Tinubu administration, plans to reschedule the census have equally faced difficulties, as the Federal Government remains uncertain over timing, methodology, and questions regarding how best to capture data on large, mobile populations, including internally displaced persons.
“This stop-and-go activity on the census cannot work with me. So we better have a definite path,” Tinubu said at Monday’s meeting.
He added, “I will set up a committee for you to look at the issues critically and do a source and application of resources.
“Where can we get help, and what can we lift before we embark on proclamation?”
It would be another step closer to conducting a new national population and housing census with biometric and digital components.
Tinubu said the National Identity Management Commission must be part of the review.
“We must ascertain who we are, how many we are, and how to manage our data.
“Without an accurate census, we can’t successfully plan for employment, agriculture, and food sovereignty.
“So many problems come up without accurate data,” Tinubu noted.
He reiterated his commitment to ensuring accurate and reliable figures from the national census to strengthen development planning and improve Nigerians’ living conditions through more efficient social security.
The President noted that government incentives, such as the sale and distribution of fertilisers, could be easily improved with more reliable data and demographics.
He told the delegation that biometric capturing should be central to the process, with multiple identification features, including facial and voice recognition.
He added, “We should work on our financial muscle well in place to lift our burden before we go and meet development partners for the census.
“We should work out the figures before discussing the role of development partners.”
Meanwhile, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, said the census data would be central to future planning and resource distribution.
“At a retreat for the ministers in 2023, Mr President, you reiterated your commitment to the census, so there is no doubt about your desire and commitment to have the census.
“In fact, at the last Federal Executive Council meeting, you asked me what the problem was, and I told you it was simply an issue of lack of ability to fund the census.
“Even today, before this meeting, I called the NPC Chairman and restated your commitment to the census,” said Bagudu.
However, the minister said the commission and everyone on the team need to agree on the minimum amount that can be sourced to support the President in making the final decision.
“The NPC indicated that 40 per cent of the funding for the 2006 census came from development partners,” Bagudu stated.
He also noted that the enumeration done by NPC so far has been helpful.
Bagudu added, “Mr President, we have been having ecosystem meetings to link the identity agencies, even the geo-spatial chaired by the ministry, because of our mandate as the supervising ministry of the National Bureau of Statistics.
“So the NPC, NBS, NIMC, Ministry Of Digital Economy, passport, social register, voters register, and even telecoms data have been meeting with the National Space Research and Development Agency to see how much is available to the government regarding data and how much optimisation can take place.”
In his presentation, NPC chairman Kwarra said the last census took place in 2006, and 19 years later, the figures were no longer relevant in planning, particularly for key sectors that directly impact the population.
He said 760,000 tablets had been acquired and stored with the Central Bank of Nigeria, assuring the commission would engage with development partners to seek support whenever Tinubu proclaimed the new census.
