2023 Census: Mentally challenged persons will be counted-NPC

The National Population Commission(NPC) has said that mentally challenged individuals and the homeless would be counted in the upcoming 2023 population and housing census.

READ ALSO:Disabilities Commission Encourages Community Participation in Census 

NPC Federal Commissioner representing Ondo State, Prince Diran Iyantan, disclosed this in Akure, Ondo State, during a one-day capacity building workshop for the 2023 population and housing census publicity committee.

The commissioner, who assured Nigerians that the 2023 census would record at least 98 per cent success, explained that the purpose of the workshop was not to undermine the professionalism of the publicity committee members.

“But it is to enhance their capacity to deliver on their mandates,” he added.

He noted that the committee was one of the most important meant to drive the exercise, due to the psyche of the public.

This, he said, was because many people were usually reluctant to subscribe to government programmes.

“Because of the importance of this exercise, our governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, thought it wise to assemble the committee with seasoned professionals to have a seamless exercise in the state,” he said.

Also, the State Director of NPC, Mr. Oluyemi Falusi, while speaking on the digital innovations in the 2023 census, said that digitisation of the census was in line with UN recommendations.

Falusi further noted that the 2023 exercise would be the first digital census to be conducted in Nigeria, adding that it would facilitate faster processes, reduce error, track progress, ensure efficiency and ensure prompt publication of results, among others.

He explained that the training, recruiting, deployment, conduct, analysis, publication and other processes of the exercise were fully digitalised.

Falusi also said that the 5-tier strategy being deployed for quality assurance, robust monitoring and evaluation system had been set up.

He revealed that there would be a call centre and a situation room in the state to assess the daily progress of the exercise.

He reiterated that data analysis would be done promptly with available digital technology tools to ensure reports were published promptly.

Similarly, the Head of Census Department, Dr. Olufunbi Olowookere, revealed that the conduct of the population census in the country had been irregular.

She explained that the census was needed for economic and socio-political planning and implementation of government policies.

Dr. Olowookere, said Nigeria’s land mass had been demarcated for the exercise and data from the exercise could be used by experts in the health, agric, business, education and other sectors.

Wumi/Punch