The commencement of the 2023 national housing and population census earlier slated for March 29 is likely to be affected by the postponement of the governorship and state assembly elections.

This is according to the Chairman of the National Population Commission, Mr Nasir Kwarra, who was speaking at a meeting with the resident representative of the United Nations Population Fund in Abuja.

The state elections which were earlier scheduled to hold on March 11, have now been scheduled for March 18 by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Although no specific date is fixed for the commencement of the exercise, Mr Kwarra told reporters that he will consult with President Muhammadu Buhari for a suitable date for the national census.

On her part, the resident representative of the United Nations Population Fund, Ms Ulla Mueller, pledged the support of UNFPA in ensuring the success of the exercise.

While reiterating the significance of the exercise to the attainment of the sustainable development goal, Mueller explained that the conduct of a post-enumeration survey will also give credibility to the census.

In support of the post-enumeration survey, the UNFPA presented sixteen high-capacity computers for the conduct of the post-enumeration survey.