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FG Launch Online E-Recruitment For 2023 Population and Housing Census
By Joel Ajayi
Federal Government on Monday launched online E-recruitment Portal for successful conduct of the next Population and Housing Census in April 2023.
Speaking at the Launching of the Portal in Abuja, the Chairman National Population Commission Hon. Isa Kwarra said the need to have best hands for the exercise is very important.
According to him, to carry out the gigantic task of conducting accurate and reliable census, there is the need for the recruitment of manpower that will carry out this exercise.
“The need to be fair and transparent in the recruitment process has led the Commission to introduce the online e-recruitment portal and train the officers that will superintend over this important census recruitment process.
“I am happy to inform Nigerians that the Commission will through the online recruitment process request for applicants from the following categories of field staff that will be needed to prosecute the next Census: FacilitatorsTraining Centre Administrators, Monitoring & Evaluations OfficersData Quality Managers,Data Quality Assistants, Supervisors and Enumerators.
“The number of functionaries to be recruited in each category will depend on the number of available vacancies in each State, which will be derived largely from the total number of Enumeration Areas (EA) in the States.
“To ensure a fair, efficient and transparent recruitment selection process, the Honourable Federal Commissioners (HFC) will, in addition to the existing team at the State level, constitute a Local Government Area Recruitment Team (LRRT) which will comprise of 3 persons; The Comptrollers (Chairperson), One NPC staff who has NPC file number (as Desk officer/Secretariat), Local Government Officials.”
He added that: “The State Recruitment Review Team (SRRT), who are already profiled, are to train the Local Government Area Recruitment Team (LRRT) in conjunction with officer that will be sent from the headquarters. The Local Government Recruitment Team will work to ensure that prospective applicants in hard-to-reach areas, difficult terrains and areas with no network coverage have the opportunity to apply to serve as census functionaries and are appropriately accommodated on the recruitment portal.
“The Headquarters Recruitment Team (HRT) in conjunction with State Recruitment Review Team (SRRT) will train the Local Government Area Recruitment Team and monitor the recruitment exercise in the LGAs. The Commission assures Nigerians that the advertisement requesting for application will be placed in national print and electronic media, as well as the Commission’s dedicated website and social media platforms.
“This will remove the huge logistics of moving personnel across the country. Consequently, every community will have the opportunity of contributing to the census workforce thereby ensuring that the people are adequately counted.
I want to use this occasion to promise Nigerians that the Commission is on course and will continue to be fair and transparent as we approach the 2023 Population and Housing Census.
“To us in the Commission, the quality of staff that will perform the census activities are very important. Therefore, having good knowledge of the content of the census document, the technique and the organization of the census process is key to the success of the 2023 Population and Housing Census.
“The quality of the recruitment process will reflect on the quality of the data to be collected and ultimately the success of the 2023 census. While a good recruitment exercise will not by itself necessarily guarantee a successful census, a badly conducted recruitment process will inevitably lead to problems and increase the risk of an unsuccessful census.
“The launching of the online E-recruitment portal for the 2023 census at the headquarters marks the beginning of the online recruitment process whereby Nigerians from all demography and gender can hook on to the website that will be provided by the Commission to fill the online form and get themselves registered to be recruited.
“Let me use this opportunity to assure Nigerians that the bulk of personnel for the 2023 Census will be drawn from the communities where they are resident.”
He thanked President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari GCFR for his unprecedented support for the preparatory activities of the Commission towards the successful conduct of the 2023 Population and Housing Census.
Earlier, the Director, Employment and Wages at the Ministry of Labour and Productivity, Gloria Ndifon, said e-recruitment is the new development and digital is what rules the world, and while commending the Commission for giving youths job digitally she said it will enable them gain experience and have better bargaining power for future engagements.
Also, the representative of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Chief Mrs. Ann Aderibigbe, lauded the e-recruitment portal saying this serves as a challenge to other agencies to embrace digitization to enable accuracy, saying the NPC is on the right track.
Giving an overview of the e-recruitment portal, the Census Manager, Inuwa B. K Jalingo, said the e-recruitment aims to recruit staff who will work in all areas in the six geo-political zones, and from all communities to enable adequate coverage of every cutizen, disclosing that the exercise will require over 25 million Nigerians to apply as adhoc staff.
Meanwhile, the Director Public Affairs Department at the NPC, Dr. Isiaka Yahaya, explained that the exercise is not just recruitment but a key preparatory activity to the 2023 census, adding that it is a stakeholders’ engagements activity which will enable a National census with accurate data for national planning.
Highpoint of the event was the decoration of key stakeholders from the NOA, NIPOST, INEC, NIMC, NYSC Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity, and NBS as Ambassadors of the 2023 census to join the league of Governors and President Muhammadu Buhari who had also been decorated as Ambassadors.
Featured
NELFUND: The Renewed Hope Engine Propelling Nigeria’s Youth into Tomorrow
By Dayo Israel, National Youth Leader, APC
As the National Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress, I have spent most of my tenure fighting for a Nigeria where every young person, regardless of their ward or local government, family income, or circumstance, can chase dreams without the chains of financial despair.
Today, that fight feels like victory, thanks to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). Launched as a cornerstone of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, this initiative isn’t just a policy tweak; it’s a revolution. And under the steady, visionary hand of Managing Director Akintunde Sawyerr, NELFUND has transformed from a bold promise into a roaring engine of opportunity, disbursing over ₦116 billion to more than 396,000 students and shattering barriers for over a million applicants.
Let’s be clear: NELFUND was always destined to be a game-changer. Signed into law by President Tinubu on April 3, 2024, it repealed the outdated 2023 Student Loan Act, replacing it with a modern, inclusive framework that covers tuition, upkeep allowances, and even vocational training—ensuring no Nigerian youth is left on the sidelines of progress.
But what elevates it from groundbreaking to generational? Leadership. Enter Akintunde Sawyerr, the diplomat-turned-executioner whose career reads like a blueprint for results-driven governance. From co-founding the Agricultural Fresh Produce Growers and Exporters Association of Nigeria (AFGEAN) in 2012—backed by icons like former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Dr. Akinwumi Adesina—to steering global logistics at DHL across 21 countries, Sawyerr brings a rare alchemy: strategic foresight fused with unyielding accountability.
As NELFUND’s pioneer MD, he’s turned a fledgling fund into a finely tuned machine, processing over 1 million applications since May 2024 and disbursing ₦116 billion—₦61.33 billion in institutional fees and ₦46.35 billion in upkeep—to students in 231 tertiary institutions nationwide. That’s not bureaucracy; that’s brilliance.
Sawyerr’s touch is everywhere in NELFUND’s ascent. Since the portal’s launch, he’s overseen a digital ecosystem that’s as transparent as it is efficient—seamless verification, BVN-linked tracking, and real-time dashboards that have quashed misinformation and built trust. In just 18 months, the fund has empowered 396,252 students with interest-free loans, many first-generation learners who might otherwise have dropped out.
Sensitization drives in places like Ekiti and Ogun have spiked applications — 12,000 in a single day in one instance, while expansions to vocational centers in Enugu pilot the next wave of skills-based funding. And amid challenges like data mismatches and fee hikes, Sawyerr’s team has iterated relentlessly: aligning disbursements with academic calendars, resuming backlogged upkeep payments for over 3,600 students, and even probing institutional compliance to safeguard every kobo. This isn’t management; it’s mastery—a man who doesn’t just lead but launches futures.
Yet, none of this happens in a vacuum. President Tinubu’s alliance with trailblazers like Sawyerr is the secret sauce securing Nigeria’s tomorrow. The President’s Renewed Hope Agenda isn’t rhetoric; it’s resources—₦100 billion seed capital channeled into a system that prioritizes equity over elitism. Together, they’ve forged a partnership where vision meets velocity: Tinubu’s bold repeal of barriers meets Sawyerr’s boots-on-the-ground execution, turning abstract policy into tangible triumphs. It’s a synergy that’s non-discriminatory by design—Christians, Muslims, every tribe and tongue united in access—fostering national cohesion through classrooms, not courtrooms.
As Sawyerr himself notes, this is “visionary leadership” in action, where the President’s political will ignites reforms that ripple across generations.
Why does this matter to us, Nigeria’s youth? Because NELFUND isn’t handing out handouts—it’s handing out horizons. In a country where 53% of us grapple with unemployment, these loans aren’t just funds; they’re fuel for innovation, entrepreneurship, and endurance.
Picture it: A first-generation polytechnic student in Maiduguri, once sidelined by fees, now graduates debt-free (repayments start two years post-NYSC, employer-deducted for ease) and launches a tech startup. Or a vocational trainee in Enugu, equipped with skills funding, revolutionizing local agriculture. This is quality education that endures—not fleeting certificates, but lifelong launchpads. Sawyerr’s focus on human-centered design ensures loans cover not just books, but bread—upkeep stipends of ₦20,000 monthly keeping hunger at bay so minds can soar. Under his watch, NELFUND has debunked doubts, refuted fraud claims, and delivered results that scream sustainability: Over ₦99.5 billion to 510,000 students by September, with 228 institutions on board.
As youth leaders, we see NELFUND for what it is: A covenant with our future. President Tinubu and MD Sawyerr aren’t just allies; they’re architects of an educated, empowered Nigeria—one where poverty’s grip loosens with every approved application, and innovation blooms from every funded desk. This isn’t charity; it’s an investment in the 70 million of us who will lead tomorrow.
We’ve crossed one million applications not because of luck, but leadership—a duo that’s turning “access denied” into “future unlocked.”
To President Tinubu: Thank you for daring to dream big and backing it with action.
To Akintunde Sawyerr: You’re the executor we needed, proving that one steady hand can steady a nation.
And to every Nigerian youth: Apply. Graduate. Conquer.
Because with NELFUND, your generation isn’t just surviving—it’s thriving, enduring, and eternal.
The Renewed Hope isn’t a slogan; it’s our story, now written in scholarships and success. Let’s keep turning the page.
Dayo Israel is the National Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
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