By Muhammad Amaan
The Challenge Initiative (TCI) Nigeria, an international organisation that promotes global urban reproductive health, has called for sustainable and comprehensive family planning to address challenges of rapid population growth.
The organisation made the call in a statement issued by Omobonike Adebayo, the Programme Officer, Development Communications (DevComs) Network, to commemorate the 2024 World Population Day (WPD) on Thursday in Lagos.
The World Population Day is annually observed on July 11 globally to raise awareness about global population issues and their impacts on the society.
The theme for the 2024 global observance is “To Leave No One Behind, Count Everyone.”
The programme officer, therefore quoted Dr Taiwo Johnson, the Country Team Lead of TCI as saying “World Population Day is a pivotal moment for Nigeria to reflect on challenges and realise the importance of family planning and childbirth spacing.
“It is also an opportunity to address the country’s unique demographic needs, particularly in urban, peri-urban, rural and underserved areas.”
The team lead added that “Nigeria faces significant challenges with rapid population growth, which exacerbates poverty, strains healthcare systems and impedes sustainable development.
“Embracing the power of inclusive and comprehensive data collection and analysis are critical for effective family planning and essential to manage the demographic trend, ensuring that resources are adequately allocated to improve the quality of lives.”
He said that Nigeria’s current population is more than 200 million, with projections indicating continued rapid growth in years to come.
He explained that “the theme of this year’s WPD underscores the critical role of inclusive data in fostering sustainable development and ensuring that every Nigerian has access to resources and opportunities they need to thrive.
“Comprehensive data collection and analysis helps to institute informed planning and service delivery, essential for all states to address the needs of the populace.
“Adequate data collection will also help to deliver dividends of democracy to the people.”
The country team lead said efforts by TCI in 23 states of the federation is yielding results, with support to governments across the country, adding that Nigeria must invest more in inclusive, equitable and transparent data collection and family planning to manage population growth.
“Specifically, new data tools can highlight invisible issues but must be managed carefully to avoid biases and privacy risks,” he said.
