The National Population Commission (NPC) on Wednesday launched the Enumeration Area Demarcation (EAD) programme in Remo North and Ikenne Local Government Areas of Ogun State, ahead of the planned national population census.
The Federal Commissioner of NPC in Ogun, Mrs Oluseyi Aderinokun, while speaking at the launch held in Iperu, explained that the process was to delineate the entire land area of the state into small geographical and democratic units.
Aderinokun stated that the units comprised specified number of persons and households which a team of enumerators could cover during a census.
She added that the success of a credible and accurate census depends on the quality and reliability of enumeration area demarcation.
The federal commissioner stated that the EAD exercise was in no way the determinant of the population of any locality, local government or state.
“This phase which is the 10th of the EAD will hold in 26 states and FCT. Ikenne and Remo North local government area were selected for Ogun State. During the previous phases, Abeokuta South, Ijebu Ode, Yewa South, Abeokuta North and Sagamu Local Government areas had been demarcated.
“Beginning from this phase of the exercise, a new software is being introduced. This innovation, which was developed exclusively and internally by the NPC, has now made the entire EAD process completely paperless,” she said.
Aderinokun explained that the purpose of the gathering was to seek the support of the state and local governments, traditional rulers, community leaders and the people in view of the huge deployment of personnel and materials for the exercise.
“Ogun has the largest number of industrial establishments in the country. The state has become migrants’ destination point. We therefore need to capture and document officially this growth resulting from our unique position, ” she added.
In her address, the Deputy Governor of the state, Mrs Noimot Salako -Oyedele, commended NPC for the programme, adding that the government had donated 20 motorcycles to ensure the success of the exercise.
Salako -Oyedele noted that the enumeration area demarcation was not about taxation but about allocation of resources, saying that the state government would cooperate with the commission for the success of the programme.
