CENSUS WILL HOLD IN CRISIS COMMUNITIES IN EBONYI — DARLINGTON OKEREKE

REPORTER: AMECHI ODO

The National Population Commission (NPC) has reitrated its commitment to the conduct of the National Census in all parts of Ebonyi State including war torn Effium and Ezza Effium communities as well as other crisis prone areas in Ebonyi State.

The Federal Commissioner in charge of the state, Chief Darlington Okereke, announced this while briefing journalists on the ten days state level training of facilitators for the Population and Housing Census in Abakaliki.

Chief Okereke explained that the Commission used hybrid technique to demarcate war torn communities and expressed the hope that there would be adequate provision of security for the officials to be deployed to the area for census coverage.

He noted that the Commission would take advantage of security arrangement put in place during the General Election to ensure a hitch free digital Census in March and April 2023.

According to Chief Okereke, 851 trainees carefully selected to function as specialized workforce and facilitators from all nooks and crannies of the state are taking part in the training which would end on February 5, 2023.

“The essence of the workshop is to equip the trainees, who are the drivers of the census process, with specialized knowledge of digital census in line with the International standard and global best practices for the success of the first ever digital Census in Nigeria and Africa.

“The curriculum for the training has been specially designed to suit the process and it is the belief of the Commission that with the intensive training of the participants, the Commission shall achieve optimal performance in March/April 2023 population and Housing Census,” he boasted.

Chief Okereke explained that the Commission had also commenced the screening for the supervisors and enumerators in the 13 Local Government Areas of the state.

EDITED BY CHUKWUBUIKE MADU