Nigeria’s High Population Hindering Development

The Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, says Nigeria’s increasing population is affecting social development in the country with an adverse effect on quality of life.

He spoke in Abuja yesterday at the launch of the 2022 State of the World Population Report organised by the United Nations Population Fund, with the theme ‘Seeing the Unseen: The Case for Action in the Crisis of Unintended Pregnancy.’

He said Nigeria’s current population, projected at about 214 million due to high population growth rate of 3.2 percent and a high total fertility rate of 5.3 percent children per woman, was compounded by “unfavourable family planning.”

“Given the poor family planning indices, it is not surprising that the prevalence of unintended pregnancies is very high. According to the 2018 NDHS Report, 3 percent and 8 percent of pregnancies in Nigeria were unwanted and mistimed respectively this is attributable to non-use, inconsistent use, or incorrect use of effective family planning methods,” he said.

Chairman, National Population Commission, Nasir Isa Kwarra, said 2.1 million of pregnancies in Nigeria were unintended.

According to him, most women and girls find themselves in situations that inhibit them from exercising their fundamental rights and having opportunities to take decisions on issues that affect their reproductive lives. “These inhibitions have consequences on their health, well-being, dreams, income/earnings, job security, aspirations, educational attainment/achievements, disposition and potentials in life.”