The Federal Government on Thursday announced that the next census for the country would in April 2023.
Director General of National Population Commission, Mallam Nasir Isa – Kwara stated this at the state house in Abuja after attending the National Council of State meeting which was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Speaking with journalists after the meeting, the chairman said the next census would hold in 2023 adding that the National Population Commission would hold a mock counting in June after the political parties might have concluded their primaries.
He lamented that the current data in use by the country are obsolete projections saying that the census would provide more accurate data for national planning.
“It is very crucial because I have highlighted that the Census is a very important exercise for the nation. Because through census we generate the data that we use for policymaking, for planning, for development, by the three tiers of government, and the private sector, all need this.
“If you are a private sector, you’re producing something, certainly, you need to know the population of an area if you want to create a market there.
“So census data is very crucial, very important. Because, the data we’ve been using are just projections, estimation and are sort of obsolete, we need the actual census data to use for our planning.