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2023 Census: NPC Expends N200bn In 9 Years Not One Year- Commission

Published

3 years ago

June 16, 2023

Joel Ajayi
The National Population Commission NPC on Friday cleared aired on the rumour going on some section of some media that the sum of N200 billion had been rapidly expended on the 2023 Census in preparations for the 2023 Census.

NPC said that the news is far from the truth adding that the N200bn was the total amount of money spent since commencement of census in 2014.

Making the position of commission known on Friday in a world press briefing the Director, Public Affairs National Population Commission Isiaka Yahaya, Ph.D said the 200b not spend in 2023 as it was claimed by some media session, it was total money spent since 2014.

According to him, the positive and incisive reporting of the census preparatory activities so far has placed the 2023 Census at the centre of national discourse thereby mobilizing Nigerians for its successful conduct.

“In what ordinarily could be regarded as an open display of transparency aimed at assuring Nigerians and the international community that the journey towards the 2023 Population and Housing Census remains on course, the Chairman of the National Population Commission, Hon Nasir Isa Kwarra at a breakfast meeting with Media Executives on 18th May 2023 in Abuja disclosed that the sum of N200 billion had been spent so far on preparations for the 2023 Census.

“It was a very engaging session in which the Chairman and other principal officers of the Commission took turns to explain in detail innovations and the giant strides that have been recorded in preparation for the first ever digital census in Nigeria. In response to the question on what has been spent so far on preparations for the census, the Chairman forthrightly disclosed that about N200 billion had been spent on preparatory activities for the census.

“Regrettably however, in a sensational move that betrays the essence of professional journalism, some sections of the media came up with the screaming headline that the sum of N200 billion had been rapidly expended on the 2023 Census, ignoring totally the substance of the event, which was to give a detailed account of what has been done to make the 2023 Census a success. Emphasis was needlessly placed on expenditure, rather than the easily verifiable achievements and innovations on the 2023 Census.

“Comments by other public analysts who did not attend the event were even more damaging, creating the impression that the Commission had ‘squandered’ N200 billion on a ‘botched census’.

“It has therefore become necessary to set the records straight and put into proper context the expenditure of 200 Billion Naira by the National Population Commission in preparation for the 2023 Census. Consistent with global practice and inspired by an unswerving commitment to positively rewrite the history of census in Nigeria, the Commission opted to conduct a digital census deploying technology on a massive scale.

“In a country struggling with acute infrastructural deficit, this massive undertaking can not come cheap but at a huge cost. Yes, it is true that N200 billion has been spent on preparations for the 2023 Census so far.

“However, this fund was not expended in the last few weeks, months or years but rather since 2014 when preparations for the 2023 Census actually began. Indeed, part of the N200 billion was expended before the coming of the present Commission, which was inaugurated twice between 2018 and 2020 and even before the inception of the Buhari Administration.”

While giving details of how money was spent in the last 8 years, Director of PAD said: “the first preparatory activity for the 2023 Population and Housing Census was the Enumeration Area Demarcation (EAD) which the Commission implemented in phases on an incremental basis spanning over a period of 8 years. The EAD involved the division of the 774 Local Government Areas of the country into Enumeration Areas.

“The Enumeration Area Demarcation was done digitally from 2014 to 2022. Given the size of Nigeria, carrying out such expansive field operations must of necessity come with a huge cost. Major cost elements in the EAD project include the acquisition of high-resolution satellite imageries of entire land space of Nigeria and equipment, deployment of logistics across the country and training and deployment of tens of thousands of ad-hoc workers for several months to carry out the field operations. All of these were paid for, and heavily too.

“Another major cost element of the 2023 Census is the series of test runs carried out by the Commission to determine the appropriateness or otherwise of the methodology, processes and systems being put in place for the exercise.

“The Commission carried out an elaborate consultative process in designing a census questionnaire that responded to the country’s data needs for sustainable development. Series of workshops involving the academia, professional bodies, Civil Society Organizations and stakeholders were organized at the national and state levels between 2015 and 2017.

“The first Pretest was conducted between 31st May, 2021 and 13th June, 2021 in the thirty-six states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory while the second Pretest with larger coverage and broader objectives was conducted from November 24th to December 10th 2021 also in the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). These test runs cost huge amount of money in terms of training, deployment of personnel, and procurement of equipment and software.

“The Commission conducted a Trial Census in July 2022. The Trial Census was a dress rehearsal of the main census and was conducted to assess the overall preparedness for the conduct of the 2023 Census and it took place in all the 36 states of the federation and the FCT with over 13,000 personnel trained, deployed and paid allowances for the training and fieldwork for about one month. “
He added that: “the backbone of any digital operation including the census is the acquisition of hardware equipment and development of appropriate software. Putting in place a corresponding technological structure and facilities for the 2023 Census cost a fortune. In addition to the procurement of computers, laptops, desktops, printers and solar power system for the census, the Commission developed numerous softwares not only for census operations but also to manage its processes.

“The software procured for the census include Censuspad and CSentry for data collection, Azure Cloud Infrastructure for managing data storage, security and processing and Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) geospatial data for integration, analysis and utilization.
“In recognition of its work in the 2023 Census EAD, the Commission received the Special Achievement in GIS (SAG) award at the 2022 Users Conference of ESRI held at its headquarters, California, United States. ESRI is the World Leading Developer of GIS Software. Other software acquired include Enumeration Dashboard for monitoring of data quality and coverage Geo spatial dashboard, recruitment portal, logistics management information system and Mobile Device Monitoring System amongst others.

He assured Nigerians and indeed development partners of its irrevocable commitment and competence to deliver a credible, reliable and acceptable census data.

“The items for which the sum of N200 billion was expended are available, verifiable and remain useful for the next census anytime it is to be conducted.The scope and quality of arrangements put in place will not only be useful for the next census but also makes future censuses less expensive.”

“NPC wish to state unequivocally that the Commission has nothing to hide as regards the preparatory activities for the Census.

“The implementation of the Census project is being carried out in a professional and transparent manner; therefore, the Commission is open to inquiry and is ready to offer clarification if the need arises.”

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Strategic Partnerships, Diaspora Investment and Improved Workforce Critical to Industrialization-DG RMRDC

Published

2 days ago

November 12, 2026

The Gleamer

By: Stella Azi and Adaora Adibe

The Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike-Muonso, has called for a strategic shift from the exportation of raw commodities to domestic processing, manufacturing and value addition, declaring that Nigeria possesses enormous untapped raw material resources capable of driving industrialisation, creating jobs and strengthening the country’s economic competitiveness.

Prof. Ike-Muonso made this submission in a lecture titled Unlocking Nigeria’s Raw Material Value Chain for Industrialization, Manufacturing and Competitiveness, where he presented an extensive assessment of Nigeria’s resource endowments, industrial challenges and emerging investment opportunities across agricultural commodities, solid minerals and waste-based raw materials.

The lecture highlighted a combined US$2.65 trillion global market opportunity across 30 major raw material value chains, comprising 12 agricultural value chains valued at US$932 billion, 11 mineral value chains worth US$1.352 trillion and seven circular-economy value chains estimated at US$366 billion.

According to the RMRDC Boss, Nigeria must move beyond the traditional approach of extracting and exporting raw materials to building competitive domestic industries that transform these resources into intermediate products, industrial inputs and finished goods for local consumption and international markets.

He observed that the country’s manufacturing sector has struggled to sustain its 2014 peak, with its contribution to real Gross Domestic Product declining from 9.64 per cent in 2014 to 8.05 per cent in 2025, representing a 16.5 per cent decline. He also drew attention to the increasing cost of raw material imports, which rose to US$20.5 billion in 2025, approximately six times the 2020 level.

He explained that the growing dependence on imported industrial inputs exposes Nigerian manufacturers to foreign exchange volatility, increases production costs and weakens the competitiveness of locally manufactured products.

Prof. ke-Muonso stressed that the solution lies in developing domestic raw material value chains through deliberate investment in processing facilities, research and development, technology, infrastructure and stronger linkages between producers, processors and manufacturers.

He identified agriculture, solid minerals and industrial waste as three major resource platforms for Nigeria’s industrial transformation, stating the country’s significant production capacity and the enormous opportunities available for downstream processing.

Ike-Muonso noted that Nigeria produces over 63 million metric tonnes of cassava annually, making it the world’s largest producer, while also maintaining strong positions in cocoa, cashew, sesame, palm oil and cotton. However, more than 80 per cent of agricultural output leaves farms without adequate processing, resulting in the loss of significant economic value and industrial opportunities.

In the solid minerals sector, he identified more than 44 commercially viable minerals across over 500 locations, including lithium, gold, barite, bitumen, iron ore and high-grade limestone, describing them as strategic resources capable of supporting steel production, energy storage, electrification and advanced manufacturing.

The DG further drew attention to Nigeria’s industrial and agro-waste resources, noting that the country generates over 32 million tonnes of solid waste annually. He explained that agricultural residues, cassava peels, scrap metals, plastics and electronic waste could serve as important feedstock for bio-fertilisers, industrial chemicals, recycled polymers, energy production and other manufacturing applications.

In the agricultural sector, the DG identified cassava and industrial starch, cotton and natural textiles, natural rubber and elastomers, oil palm and oleochemicals, maize derivatives and cocoa processing as priority areas requiring increased investment.

He explained that processing agricultural commodities into industrial starch, sweeteners, textiles, technical rubber, specialty fats and other intermediate products would enable Nigeria to capture more value from its agricultural resources while reducing dependence on imported industrial inputs.

For the minerals sector, he highlighted crude oil-to-olefins and petrochemicals, lithium and energy storage, iron ore and steel, rare earth elements, bauxite and aluminium, and copper and electrification as strategic investment opportunities.

He particularly emphasised the importance of moving beyond mineral extraction into beneficiation, refining, battery precursors, industrial chemicals, metal fabrication and advanced materials production.

On the circular economy, Prof. Ike-Muonso identified electronic waste recovery, scrap metal recycling, plastic waste processing, agro-waste valorisation and battery recycling as emerging industrial opportunities.

He explained that transforming waste into productive industrial feedstock would not only reduce environmental pollution but also create new manufacturing industries, generate employment and reduce the importation of valuable industrial materials.

He noted that to address the structural challenges confronting raw material-based industrialisation, the DG highlighted the strategic interventions of the RMRDC, particularly the proposed 30% Value Addition Bill and the Nigeria Integrated Information Statistical System for Raw Materials and Products (NISSRAMP).

He described the 30% Value Addition Bill as an important policy instrument designed to encourage domestic processing of raw materials before export, strengthen local manufacturing capacity and guarantee access to essential raw materials for Nigerian industries, and NISSRAMP as a critical data infrastructure that would improve access to verified information on the availability, location and quality of raw materials.

According to him, the combination of appropriate policy instruments and reliable resource data would help de-risk investments, improve transparency and strengthen confidence in Nigeria’s raw material sector.

He emphasised the importance of collaboration among government, academia and industry in developing bankable projects, sharing investment risks and accelerating the establishment of processing and manufacturing facilities.

Professor Ike-Muonso called on Nigerians in the diaspora and other local and international investors to take advantage of the opportunities available in Nigeria’s raw material sector.

He identified industrial processing parks, mineral beneficiation and refining, agro-industrial platforms, circular-material processing, industrial input manufacturing and enabling infrastructure as viable investment platforms.

He noted that diaspora investors could contribute beyond financial capital by bringing technology, international business networks, governance standards, technical expertise and access to global markets.

He maintained that Nigeria’s industrial transformation requires coordinated investment across the entire value chain, from raw material sourcing and aggregation to processing, manufacturing, certification and export development.

Professor Ike-Muonso stressed that the country’s industrial future would depend not merely on the volume of raw materials extracted but on the capacity to transform them into competitive products that meet domestic and international market requirements.

He maintained that developing local value chains would stimulate industrial growth, create employment opportunities, diversify exports, conserve foreign exchange and deepen Nigeria’s technological capabilities.

Through its strategic interventions, the RMRDC is positioning itself as a critical bridge between resource availability, investment opportunities and industrial competitiveness, with the ultimate objective of transforming Nigeria from a predominantly raw material exporting economy into a strong manufacturing and value-adding nation.

Ike-Muonso has demonstrated this since assumption of office as the Director General/ CEO RMRDC in the area of capacity building, improved working conditions, promotion of merit, and maintaining a conducive environment that rewards excellence, innovation and dedication. This is evident in his institution of RMRDC training school, reward for winners of the RMRDC innovation challenge among others.

His commitment has brought recognition both nationally and internationally: Al-Jazirah double honour awards as Public Servant /Government Agency of the year 2024-2025 and the recent election as the Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Representative on the Board of the World Association of Industrial and Technological Research Organisations (WAITRO) is a attestation to his commitment.

Concluding the lecture, the DG charged staff, researchers, manufacturers and investors to see themselves as nation builders in the new era of raw materials-led industrialization.

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