NIGERIA"S POPULATION CURRENTLY STANDS AT 198 MILLION - NPC CHAIRMAN, EZE DURUIHEOMA

The National Population Commission (NPC) has put Nigeria's current population at 198 million people with urban population growing at an average annual growth rate of about 6.5 per cent.

Chairman of NPC, Eze Duruiheoma , stated this in NewYork while delivering Nigeria's statement on Sustainable Cities, Human Mobility and International Migration at the 51st Session of Commission on Population and Development.

According to him, 'Nigeria remains the mist populous in Africa, the seventh globally with an estimated population of over 198 million . The recent world population prospect predicts that by 2050 , Nigeria will become the third most populated country in the world. Over the last 50 years, the Nigeria's urban population has grown at an average annual growth rate of more than 6.5 percent without commensurate increase in social amenities and infrastructure. It grew substantially from 17.3 in 1967to 49.4 per cent in 2017. In addition , the 2014 world urbanization prospect reports , predicts that by 2050, most of the population - 70 per cent - will be residingnin cities. The 2010 Human Mobility Survey report revealed that 23 per cent of the sample population were of more females than males".

He said the category of population mostly engage in urbanization and migration were young people of teenage and adolescent s' girls and boys ,women of child bearing age and the working age population . He said existing urbanization trend coupled with internally displaced persons (IDPs) in cities, pose critical challenges to securing sustainabilty of our cities, including efforts to make them smart and responsive to human influx.

"Nigeria continues to commit to solving the challenges of insurgents in the Northeast,which has induced a high number of internally displaced persons. We acknowledge that women, children and particularly the girl child are often the most vulnerable in these displacements, and in this regard, we remain focused on the wellbeing of these vulnerable parts of our population. We are committed to providing adequate health care services, reducing maternal mortality , rebuilding safe schools and empowering our women , ensuring no one is left behind in terms of achieving sustainable development."

He said these challenges adversely impacted on the quality of life and standards of living of the urban populace. According to him , Nigeria stays committed to the twin goals of the Habitat Agenda - adequate shelter for all and settlements in an urbanizing world.