Nigeria is moving closer to conducting a new national population and housing census, with plans to incorporate biometric and digital components. President Bola Tinubu, during a meeting with officials from the National Population Commission (NPC) on February 24, 2025, announced the creation of a committee to review the census budget in light of the current financial realities. He emphasized the importance of accurate data for effective planning in sectors like employment, agriculture, and food security.

The NPC is working with various government agencies, including the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), to optimize available data sources. The census is expected to feature biometric capture, including facial and voice recognition. The NPC has also procured 760,000 tablets for the census, with further discussions underway regarding development partners’ support. This initiative aims to improve development planning, resource distribution, and public services through reliable demographic data.

In addition to the National Population Commission (NPC), agencies like the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the Ministry of Digital Economy, and the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) are actively involved. These agencies are working together to integrate different data sources, such as identity records, telecom data, and voter registration, to ensure a more comprehensive and accurate census process.

President Tinubu’s commitment to ensuring the success of the census is clear, as he emphasized the importance of obtaining reliable data to address key challenges in Nigeria, including food security, employment, and effective distribution of government resources. He also made it clear that any stop-and-go approach to the census would not be acceptable under his leadership. Instead, he is advocating for a well-defined and structured path forward to ensure that resources are properly allocated and that all partners involved are aligned before launching the census.

In his remarks, Tinubu also mentioned that government incentives, such as the sale and distribution of fertilizers, could be more effectively managed with more reliable demographic data. This underscores the broader economic implications of a successful census. By having accurate population and housing data, the government can make more informed decisions about where to allocate resources, design policies, and improve social services to better meet the needs of the population.

Finally, Kwarra’s statement that the 2006 census data is outdated highlights the urgency of the matter. The population has likely grown significantly, and new challenges, such as urbanization, migration, and demographic shifts, need to be accounted for in the new census. With the preparation already underway, the hope is that the upcoming census will help lay a solid foundation for Nigeria’s future development and planning.