The UNFPA Chief Technical Adviser on the 2023 National Population and Housing Census Dr. Collins Opiyo has said that the conduct of a credible census which is up to international standard is possible in Nigeria.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Dr. Opiyo made this known while speaking to Erevision MediaTV in an interview at the close of a 5-day Retreat on Review of Trial Census for 2023 Population and Housing Census at the Rockview Hotel in Abuja.
According to him, all that was seen during the 5-day workshop shows that the National Population Commission is on the right course as far as Implementation of 2023 census is concerned, stressing that this census is strictly adhering to international standard and best practices that govern census taking all over the world.
“Nigeria is one of the countries in the world to be able to do census, hopefully, successfully in 2023. So we have set up the systems, the processes, the procedures, the methods that we need to make sure that we have a credible census that is acceptable not only to Nigeria, but the international community as well”
So this workshop, for these five days, at the end of it, as you heard the Census Manager going through the list and those during my presentation, we know now what is not working. We also know what has worked well, we’ve taken stock of that, we’re going to build on it.”
“And we also know what is not working and time is on our side. We have at least six months before we get to the census. We’re going to use that time well to make sure that everything that we have noted that is not working well is twigged or transformed or we make the right adjustment because our intentions are very very clear that we want to make sure that this census is credible and implemented up to international standard”, he said.
The Chief Technical Adviser on Census who also delivered an exhilarating presentation on “2023 Trial Census Operation, Standards and Compliance” during the Retreat said tha Nigeria is on the right path to 2023 census.
“The planning, and the execution of this census is on the right track, except for the fact that it’s six years late because it should have happened in 2016, and indeed, certain elements of this planning started before 2016”
“2023 census is being implemented in accordance to United Nations standard and international best practices. That include recommendations that countries doing census in this era use technology to ensure data accuracy and timeliness of results.
“As I went through my paper, all the five features for modern census as recommended by the UN are being implemented.
“The questionnaire instruments, the census topics are in tendon with United Nations recommendations. In addition to that, we have added questions that would respond to the idiosyncratic demands of data for development in Nigeria based on the national development vision, based on other sub-regional features like ECOWAS, and those of the continental development visions in Africa-OAU agenda for 2023”, he said.
Dr. Collins Opiyo explained that the data the National Population Commission is going to collect will respond to sustainable development goals as well as national, continental and sub-regional development goals.
“So every base is covered in this particular set. And this is why at the UN we say this census in Nigeria is transformational in it’s agenda what it would bring to the table and how it will catapult Nigeria to a different level of development that is predicated on transparency and accountability”
“And also in a way that we use technology and innovations to transform various processes so that some of the fears that people have before now through human interaction should be removed. It is machines based and we can be able to monitor centrally and know that everything is working according to plan. And when it is not working according to plan we’ll know. For instance, if an Enumerator is collecting information outside of the EA, we’ll know. He’ll not even be able to collect. If an Enumerator is collecting information for a building or household away from the area we’ll know because he’ll not be able to collect. And if an Enumerator is making up records, we’ll know because we’ve built into the CAPI checks and balances that will alert us. The moment the data reaches the server, we’ll know that this data is not real. So we’ve covered all these things”.
“Based on what we have seen during this workshop, we know that a credible census which is up to international standard in Nigeria is possible. That’s the message we’re taking””I want Nigerians and the international community to know, is to trust us, that we know what we’re doing, we have the technology, we have the methods and processes, that we have the necessary skills to deliver this, we’re willing and ready to do it, and we’re actually doing, so they need to trust us with God’s grace”, he said.
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