By Hassan John
The United Nation Population Fund (UNFPA) has donated 16 high capacity laptops to the National Population Commission (NPC).
This is part of its support to ensure that the NPC conducts a globally acceptable population and housing census in Nigeria in 2023.
Apart from these computers, the UNFPA had already supported the NPC with high level technical expertise, experience, comparative advantages in operational intelligence and best practices the UNFPA collated from decades of work in more than 150 countries.
Speaking while donating the computers, the Resident Country Representative in Nigeria, Ms Ulla Mueller, said that the laptops are “to support the continued progress of the Post Enumeration Survey (PES) process especially as we embark on the critical data collection and analysis phase.”
The specification of the laptops, according to the Resident Representative include Dell XPS 15-Core i9, 12th Generation, SSD 1TB, model, 5.00GHz, 32GB RAM, 5.00 GHz, 32GB RAM, Screen resolution 15,6”, Touchscreen, Windows 11.
“Today’s occasion is not just about handing over of the Laptops. It’s also an opportunity to renew our long term and productive partnership and dedicate ourselves to serving assiduously in the roles and responsibilities accorded us by our respective institutions and contribute our quota towards improving the welfare of the people of Nigeria.
“UNFPA remains committed to supporting a credible Census process conducted up to international standards and that meets the acceptance criteria of the Nigerian people,” she said.
Ms Mueller continued that: “As the Lead global partner, UNFPA brings to the Nigeria 2023 Census high level technical expertise, experience, comparative advantages in operational intelligence and best practices collated from decades of work in more than 150 countries.
“In particular, UNFPA continues to provide and mobilise additional technical and financial assistance to ensure that all components and phases of the Census are implemented according to the United Nations Principles and recommendations for the 2020 World Programme on Population and Housing Censuses.”
While describing the donation of the computers as a catalytic contribution, the UNFPA Representative disclosed that other support already meted out to ensure the success of the census include hiring of consultants on PES methodology, data science and matching algorithm development, CAPI application development for Trial PES, Trial Census data analysis workshop, staff capacity building and overall technical assistance and oversight provided by the CTA – the UNFPA Chief Technical Adviser.
On his part, the Chairman of the NPC, Hon Nasir Isa Kwarra, said that the presentation of the laptops not only further affirmed the importance of the PES to the entire Census process, but also reaffirms the UNFPA’s commitment towards the success of the 2023 Post Enumeration Survey (PES) and the 2023 Population and Housing Census (PHC) at large.
“I am delighted to receive with thanks and appreciation the gift of these 16 (sixteen) Laptops and Accessories from the UNFPA under the very able leadership of the UNFPA Resident Representative to Nigeria, Ms. Ulla Elizabeth Mueller in support of the 2023 Post Enumeration Survey (PES). I wish to assure you that these laptops will be put to effective use towards executing the agenda of the 2023 PES.
“Over the years, the UNFPA’s partnership with the NPC has been invaluable in propelling the vision and mission of the Commission forward in its bid to strive for demographic excellence, a successful and fully digital 2023 PHC and in turn the 2023 PES.
“Thus far, the Commission and the UNFPA have spared no expense in the training and equipping the Commission’s ranks with the necessary tools, knowledge, and skills to undertake the 2023 PES in line with international best practices,” he said.
It would be that on Monday, at a high level partner engagement to galvanise support for the 2023 population and housing census, the Minister of State Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Ikanade Agba, disclosed that the 2023 population and housing census has a funding gap of N327.2b which is equivalent to $709.9m.
The federal government, according to him, has so far committed N291.5 billion ($632m) to the Census. This is just 46% of total funding for the Census.
The total amount required to enable the census to hold including post Census activities is said to be N869 billion ($1.88b).
On the other hand, Census requirement is N626b ($1.36b) which is about $6 per capita, just slightly above the threshold of up to $5 per capita. Post-Census -up to 2025, require – N243b ($527m).
