Nigeria to start national census May 3rd

Nigeria will conduct, as of May 3rd, the national population census, the first in 17 years, a state official said Monday.

Garba Abari, Head of the National Orientation Agency, said the process will take three days and will wrap up on May 5.

“The census is very important because it brings together development, planning, security, infrastructure development, education, health and other demographic issues in one place,” he added.

Nigeria’s estimated population is more than 200 million strong and the United Nations expects that to double by 2050.

The process was initially slated to be held from March 29 to April 2, more than a month after the presidential polls. Census figures in Nigeria influence the sharing of oil revenues and political representation among the 36 states and 300 ethnic groups.