Nigeria’s first census in 17 years will take place in May rather than at the end of March, the information minister announced on Wednesday, citing delayed governorship elections.
The election for new governors has been pushed back a week to March 18.
The date of the census in Africa’s most populous country is still unknown.
“I believe they [National Population Commission] will be unable to begin the census as scheduled due to the rescheduling of the elections,” minister Lai Mohammed told reporters.
The census results determine the distribution of oil revenues and political representation.
The population of the country is estimated to be more than 200 million people. According to the UN, it will be the third most populous country in the world after China and India by 2050.
