The chairman, National Population Commission (NPC), Alhaji
Nasir Kwarra, has assured that the N200 billion spent on the postponed 2023
census was judiciously utilised and items procured available for scrutiny.
Kwarra said this on Thursday in Akwanga, Nasarawa State,
while fielding questions from journalists on the sideline of the opening
ceremony of the Training Interviewers for the 2023 Nigeria Demographic and
Health Survey (NDHS).
The House of Representatives had on Wednesday sought to
investigate the N200 billion spent on preparations for the postponed 2023
census by NPC.
The NPC boss said the procurement preparatory processes for
the census were enduring and items procured durable as they would be used for
the next census because they are readily available.
“We don’t have to procure these items again and the training
that we have conducted remains with the people we trained, the facilitators,
the supervisors and the enumerators.
“So, what we may need to do is to do a refresher training for
the trial census that we did because it’s been more than a year; we will do a
similar thing, but maybe the scope will be reduced because we don’t have to go
all out again and conduct a full blown trial census.
“So, most things are in place, right from the Personal
Digital Assistants procured are well secured in our various Central Bank of
Nigeria offices nationwide.”
The chairman added that other facilities such as manuals for
the training, the ICT equipment, data centres have been continually developed
and that the commission is on course for the census.
He, however, said that he believes that the nation still
needs the census because the issue of security depends on it.
He said “no matter what, we need this data so that we can
plan for the development of the country, including addressing the issue of
security.”
On the importance of the NDHS, Kwarra said that over the
years, the survey stood as a beacon of reliable, comprehensive data, providing
policymakers, actionable researchers and stakeholders with insights to make
informed decisions.
He added that “every cycle of the NDHS brings not only its
own set of challenges, but opportunities to redefine the narrative for health
and social demographics in Nigeria.
“The importance of what we are about to undertake cannot be
overstated.
The stakes are high; the information we gather and the
insights we develop have the capability to influence health and social
policies, not just for the immediate future, but for a long time to come.
“It is not simply about numbers and data; it’s about human
lives, about the wellbeing of our communities and the future trajectory of our
nation.”
The chairman told the interviewers that as key players in the
project, the success of the NDHS hinges on the quality, authenticity and
precision of the information they gather.
Mr Ishaku Maigida, the Director, Field Services and
Methodology, National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said that the data going to
be generated and produced would help to bridge the gap on availability of data
on nutrition, particularly among children and women within the reproductive
age.
He assured that NBS would continually collaborate with the
commission and any other agency working toward data generation to ensure
reliable data.
Dr Chris Isokpunwu, the Director, Planning, Research and
Statistics, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, said that the NDHS is an
important source of information for the health sector, setting a baseline for
government’s performance on health.
He said “the survey is being conducted by Nigerians and owned
by Nigeria because the NPC is conducting it and the Ministry of Health and
Social Welfare is providing technical support.
“When the result comes out, it will be a Nigerian result, so
we have to make it an accurate one such that external persons will agree that
we have conducted a good survey.
“Therefore, I want you to know that this is a national
assignment and our national reputation is also at stake and this is one survey
that you will be proud of.
“Please take this training seriously because it’s going to be
important when you go to the field; do not be tempted to cook or forge results
because decisions are made based on those results and when that happens, you
may be the one affected.”
Dr Joy Ufere, the World Health Orgainsation’s Technical
Adviser on Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health/Healthy Aging, said that the
survey is important as the world is almost six years toward the attainment of the Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs).
According to her, Nigeria is signatory to the SDGs and the
survey will tell if the nation is getting closer to achieving the goals or not.
She added that “this survey will also tell us the number of
Nigerians reached to ensure that we provide Universal Health Coverage.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the NDHS is
expected to produce data on infant and child mortality, health of women and
maternal mortality.
It will be carried out by collecting data from 42,000
households in 1400 clusters within and across the 774 local government areas of
the country.
It will involve collecting data from women of reproductive
age from 15 to 49 years and men 15 to 69 years.
Also, the height and weight of children under the age of five years will be determined, as well as the extent of wasting and stunting in children so that policy and programmes will be tailored toward addressing identified health issues.
Source: (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
