…Says Tinubu will determine actual date for next census exercise

Nkechi Onyedika-Ugoeze, Abuja

Chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC), Dr Aminu Yusuf has said that a credible, technology-driven Population and Housing Census remains the ultimate tool required to fully map, disaggregate, and sustainably deploy resources to Nigerians who look to the future with hope.

Meanwhile the commission has said that only President will determine the actual date for the next population and housing census exercise but it definitely cannot be in an election year.

Speaking at a press briefing ahead of the 2026 World Population day on Tuesday in Abuja, Yusuf reaffirmed the commitment of NPC to strengthening the systems that provide the evidence-based demographic data required for effective governance and sustainable development.

He observed that with an estimated population of 242 million people, Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and one of the youngest populations globally adding that young people aged 15 to 29 years account for approximately 30 per cent of the population.

Yusuf stated that one of the greatest opportunities before Nigeria today is the prospect of harnessing the demographic dividend.

He emphasized that Nigeria’s demographic realities present the country with a historic opportunity adding that if our young people are healthy, educated, skilled, empowered and productively engaged, they can drive economic growth, technological advancement, social cohesion and sustainable development.

Yusuf pointed out that this demographic advantage is not automatic adding that efforts towards the rollout of Demographic Dividend programming are slow with only seven of the 36 States and the FCT with a roadmap in place to facilitate the process.

He argued if the aspirations of young people are constrained by inadequate investments in human capital, limited employment opportunities and social exclusion, this demographic advantage could become a missed opportunity.

Yusuf noted that history has shown that countries which transformed their youthful populations into productive human capital experienced rapid economic growth, increased productivity, improved living standards, and sustained national development.

He said, “This year’s theme, “Realizing the hopes and aspirations of young people — today and for the future,” could not be more relevant for Nigeria. It reminds us that the future of every nation is shaped not merely by the size of its population, but by the opportunities available to its people, especially its young population. It calls on all of us to create an enabling environment in which young people can thrive, contribute meaningfully to national development, and realize their full potential.”

Yusuf stated that the theme of this year’s World Population Day, therefore, shifts our focus from merely counting young people to creating opportunities for them.

” It challenges us to ask whether our policies, investments, and institutions are adequately responding to the realities and aspirations of the largest generation of young people in our history”.

Yusuf called for accelerated action on the revision of the National Youth Policy currently undergoing its final stakeholder review stressing that the country cannot plan for a population we do not accurately count..

He highlighted youth development, human capital investment, population dynamics and evidence-based planning as fundamental to Nigeria’s economic growth, social stability and sustainable development.

Yusuf said that the commission will continue to work closely with the Federal Government, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), development partners and other stakeholders to promote policies and programmes that improve the well-being of all Nigerians, particularly our young people.

He noted that the present administration has explicitly shifted youth development from isolated social welfare projects to an interconnected economic pipeline adding that the NPC, alongside the Federal Ministry of Youth Development, is monitoring these indicators through data aggregation platforms, including the Youth Activities Dashboard (YAD).

 

He said, “In its efforts to train 3 million youth in tech through the 3MTT (3 million Technical Talent) Program, Phase 1 was deployed successfully with 30,000 fellows certified across 36 states and the FCT. To eliminate financial barriers to higher education via student loans, the government institutionalized NELFUND (Nigerian Education Loan Fund) by rolling out structured credit lines to thousands of eligible undergraduates”.

He noted that the government also facilitated Vocational Training through Tuition-free trade certification and start-up capital, resulting in over 150,000 trainees actively enrolled across 1,600 accredited vocational training centres nationwide.

 

Yusuf observed that in addressing identity and civil rights at a target of 100 percent digital birth registration for young demographics, NPC’s modernised CRVS (Civil Registration and Vital Statistics) and National Geospatial Data Repository are actively capturing unrecorded youth demographics across 774 LGAs.

 

Yusuf pointed out that while these initiatives signal immense ambition, our data structures indicate significant operational bottlenecks that must be addressed to maximise impact infrastructure deficits, the transition gap, economic pressures from rising cost of living, and insecurity that disproportionately impact young development.

Director General of NPC, Osifo Tell son Ojogun while responding to questions emphasized that only President will determine the actual date for the next population and housing census exercise but it definitely cannot be in an election year.

 

Also speaking, UNFPA Resident Representative, Ms Muriel Mafico urged the federal government and partners to renew their commitment to invest the best resource to ensure conduct of the census exercise adding that Nigeria needs accurate data and should not be guessing about it’s population at this period.

She said, “We should not be guessing because the tools, the knowledge around understanding population is the way the knowledge is made. Nigeria’s census is not just for Nigeria. It is Africa’s census. It is the world’s census and it is about all of us. As Nigeria moves towards its next census, UNFPA stands ready to support your work”.

Mafico noted that over 70% of Nigerians are below the age of 35, adding that this represents wealth as the wealth of any country is measured not in the minerals, but its human capital particularly when the people are invested, educated, healthy and are able to reach their full potential.

She stated that the major challenge is the fact that 12% of these young people are not in school, they are not working and are not in training.

Mafico also noted that 93 percent of young people who are working are in the informal sector, and we know the challenges that come with informality.

She stressed the need implement policies that address key issues around housing, access to quality and affordable basic social services, and as well as investing in gender-equitable social protection.

She said, “We have these frameworks, what remains is that we invest in those frameworks so that they can be implemented, but also that we ensure clear focus of implementing what we already know as the gaps in the policy implementation. We need to sustain implementation of the existing policies, and this needs to be done at scale and at speed if we are to make sure that we maximize and harness this demographic dividend”.

“The strategy that we are proposing as UNFPA, and this is based on evidence from across the world, one is the issue of coordination. We need to activate and ensure the Inter-Ministerial Youth Development Coordination is optimally maximized. Secondly, we need to also ensure that the Nigeria Youth Development Basket Fund is resourced. Those two factors can be a game-changer so that we move from opportunity to realizing the capacity the full capacity of young people in Nigeria”.