Census: Population clock cannot guarantee accurate population figure, says UNFPA

Mr Osaretin Adonri, Assistant Representative, UN Population Fund (UNFPA) says population clock is not a reliable indicator to guarantee accurate population figure of any nation.

He told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Monday that “population clock is only an electronic projection that is functional based on programming.”

He said that population clock all over the world was not used to ascertain accurate number of  population but based on speculation.

“Population clock cannot give you accurate population of any country because it is based on projections.

“Nigeria does not have it because I have not seen it in the population commission.”

The UNPFA official restated the call for census in the country, which he said was paramount for population accuracy and for effective planning.

He explained that the country was long overdue for a census, adding that it would put to rest the catalogue of speculative population figures about Nigeria.

According to him, Nigeria’s population for now is speculative and projected and not accurate.

The official expressed confidence in the capacity of National Population Commission (NPoPC) to conduct an all-inclusive census and called for support for the commission.

He added that every area would be counted in future census “and issues of over counting and under counting will be taken care of with Enumeration Area Demarcation (EAD) which NPopC has already started.”

NAN reports that Nigeria, Africa’s most populated country, had the last census in 2006.

-NAN