Abuja – The National Population Commission (NPC) on Monday said it would adopt a technology driven approach in the conduct of the 2017 national headcount to rid the system of multiple enumeration.
Dr Eze Duruiheoma, Chairman of the commission, disclosed this in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
Duruiheoma blamed the previous census problems on lack of credibility due to non-auditability, saying that through the technology approach, the forthcoming census would be devoid of such lapses.
He explained that with the biometric parameter, the figure could be audited and in case of any contest against the figure by any locality, the commission would be able to prove such locality wrong.
He said that the biometric parameter entails physiological attributes or features that differentiate a particular person from the other.
According to him, during enumeration, anyone one counted 100 times would be detected by the system, 99 will be cancel.
He further explained that once something was credible, it would be more acceptable both locally and internationally.
“We have had challenges with census, the challenges in our judgment are embedded in the process, and we had censuses in the past where people are counted twice or more than that.
“What we plan to do is to have a technology driven census that will incorporate biometric attributes, features of the individual, a unique identifier.
“So when you say the population of your local government is this we will challenge you to say that is not correct because is auditable.
“Once something is credible, it will be more acceptable both locally and internationally.
“When your data are credible and reliable and you plan base on your result, it will be better because you are planning for the correct number of people,’’ he said.
NAN reports that NPC is charged with the responsibilities of studying and profiling the country’s population in terms of quality and quantity of people.
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This has to do with collecting, compiling, evaluating and analysing information pertaining to the nation’s demography, economic and social data, at a specific given time of either the entire country or part of it. (NAN)