The Chairman of the National Population Council Chairman, National Population Commission, Nasir Kwarra, disclosed this to State House Correspondents on Friday shortly after an audience with the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.

“By March 29 to April 2, our staff will be in the field enumerating people,” said Kwarra.

According to him, the technological tools to be deployed will be able to code buildings and landmass, detailing information such as location, landscapes, etc.

This, he said, will ensure a credible exercise.

He also noted that non-Nigerians will be counted so long as they are in the country at the time of the exercise.

In the 2023 Appropriation Act, the Federal Government earmarked N40bn for the National Population.

A total of N10m was allocated for the national population and housing census, while the national population data bank, Nigerian population database management system geo-portal hosting of population website and web portal got N50 million.

According to the document, the conduct of census in schools and the training of advocates staff for data collection and interviewing techniques will gulp N60m

More so, the expansion of registration centres, registration of birth and death, and Adhoc registration took N350m.

The sum of N25m was allocated for census research, documentation, and archiving (i.e., research on historical events, special population e.g. herdsmen, fishermen, homeless persons, migrant farmers.)

The Punch reports that Census publicity and advocacy (I.e. publicity, information, communication, DNA enlightenment for population programmes, through print electronic media.) will gulp N120m.

Other outstanding/miscellaneous activities for the 2023 population and housing census will take N30bn.