President Bola Tinubu is set to declare fresh dates for the national population and housing census, an event initially delayed last April.
This information was disclosed by the chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC), Nasir Kwarra on Thursday, following a briefing with the president at the presidential villa in Abuja.
This meeting comes nine weeks after the census was postponed under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
The NPC Chairman revealed that the commission has presented its report to President Bola Tinubu, who is now expected to review it and set a new date for the nationwide census exercise.
Kwarra hinted that the commission may need to request additional funding.
He stated that the more the census is delayed, the greater the likelihood that its financial requirements might increase.
Kwarra said, “We briefed him fully on the level of our preparedness, the outcomes that we envisage and I’ll like to say that Mr President has graciously approved to support the Commission in the conduct of census and our preparatory activities, though we’re not stuck at all, but he has given us the courage and the impetus to upscale our preparation.
“So, we’ll continue our preparations and we’ll hear from him eventually, the date that the census will take place because we’ve made a submission to him that he will study before getting back to us. But as for the assurance of support, he has given that to us and we thank him immensely for this for also realizing the importance of data for the purpose of national planning and development.”
