You will like free labour
Nigeria’s population commission wants ₦942 billion for the national census
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Nigeria’s population commission wants ₦942 billion for the national census
The US and China are still playing the “Who can go lower” game
The Big Deal
Nigeria’s population commission wants ₦942 billion for the national census
We never thought we’d ever take sides with President Tinubu, but when a group of people present a budget of nearly ₦1 trillion for a national census, the only logical reaction is to hand them a gun and facemask so they can embrace their true calling. Or do what President Tinubu did—look at them dead in the eyes and say the loudest NO in history.
Last week, the National Population Commission(NPC) proposed a budget of ₦942 billion for Nigeria’s first census since 2006. After rejecting the budget, Tinubu made it clear that the census must happen, but not at a cost that makes it look like the country is buying 100 million extra citizens.
He also proposed an interesting money-saving hack – deploying NYSC members to handle the counting process instead of hiring professional census workers. He also set up a committee to take a critical look at the budget and align it with what Nigeria can actually afford.
To cut costs further, Tinubu wants the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) involved in the process. He’s pushing for biometric capturing (facial and voice recognition) to ensure accuracy and avoid counting the same person twice.
Why is this a big deal?
The Buhari-led administration tried to pull the same census off in 2022 with a budget of ₦178.09 billion. It’s been barely three years since then, and the budget has somehow gone up to almost ₦1 trillion. Not only is that reflective of the weak state of the naira and the effects of President Tinubu’s reforms, but it also raises questions about how the NPC arrived at this figure.
Beyond the eyebrow-raising budget, another problem is Tinubu’s money-saving plan to use NYSC members as enumerators. Sure, it sounds smart on paper—free labour, right? But in reality, handing such a critical national assignment to fresh graduates with minimal training might not be the solution the president thinks it is.
First, there’s the issue of accuracy. Census data isn’t just about counting heads; it determines everything from resource allocation to political representation. If untrained corp members mishandle the process, Nigeria could end up with flawed data that misrepresents communities.
Then there’s security. These corp members will be sent to different parts of the country, including areas with high insecurity, and we’re not sure how the government plans to protect them, especially since there have been many reported cases of abducted corpers. Maybe we shouldn’t even be thinking about sending the children of average Nigerians to volatile regions while T-Pain’s children sip tea in penthouses.
There’s also the question of motivation. Unlike trained census officials, corp members have nothing to win or lose in this process. What’s stopping a tired corper from rounding up figures so they can finish early? Or worse, manipulating numbers under pressure from local leaders?
We hope the government does things right by finding a balance between cost-effectiveness and professionalism.
The US and China are still playing the “Who can go lower” game
If you have been following the drama between Trump and the Chinese government, you’d either find China’s latest move petty or justifiable.
Starting today, March 10, China will impose new taxes on some US farm products to counter Trump's latest tariff hike.
Since returning to office in January, Trump has been handing out tariffs like party packs, targeting China, Canada, and Mexico for everything from illegal immigration to the fentanyl crisis. In February, he placed a 10% tax on all Chinese imports; then, last week, he increased it to 20%. That was the last straw for China.
Beijing fired back almost immediately, accusing the US of messing with global trade rules before announcing its set of tariffs—10% to 15% on US agricultural products.
The thing is financial experts are not optimistic about how long China can keep playing this game because the country is already dealing with slow consumer spending, a real estate crisis, and rising youth unemployment. Now, exports, which helped keep its economy afloat, are slowing down.
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→IWD 2025: What Do Young Nigerian Women Want?: You will find that some of their answers were straight to the point, while some hammered on other broader issues. Our big question?— “what would make your life better as a woman living in Nigeria?”
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