Why 2023 population census must be postponed by Michael Owhoko - ITREALMS

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Without prejudice to extent of preparations, has government genuinely evaluated reasons for dispute and rejection of previous census results in Nigeria before proceeding to organize another headcount? Results of census conducted in 1962, 1963, 1973, 1991 and 2006 were all marred by anomalies and controversies allegedly engendered by manipulation and falsification of figures.

Were there any lessons learnt from these disputes? So far, all contentious issues that diminished and undermined the credibility of the previous exercises together with emerging fresh challenges are still widespread. Distrust induced by ethnic dominance, religious supremacy, nepotism, inappropriate political structure, dishonesty, insecurity, corruption, poverty and socio-economic uncertainty are still staring at us as monsters. Preconceived notion of increased revenue and political representation as basis for census rather than national planning and development, is another matter.

Civil registration: Nigeria ID4D supports population commission - ITREALMS

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The Nigeria's Digital Identification for Development (ID4D) project has concluded plans to support the National Population Commission (NPC) towards digitizing its civil registration processes, reports ITREALMS.

ID4D’s Project Coordinator, Musa Odole Solomon disclosed this during a courtesy visit to the Chairman of the National population Commission, Alhaji Isa Kwarra at the Commission’s headquarters, Abuja.

VAT vs Sharia Hisbah: Wike lambasts northern governors, 'Convert political population to IGR' - ITREALMS

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The Executive Governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike, has lambasted his northern counterparts, especially those who destroy beer in the name of Sharia and turn around, go to Abuja monthly to collect their shares in the Value Added Tax (VAT) made from the same product in the south, reports ITREALMS.

Governor Nyemson Wike

Speaking during a statewide broadcast after the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) failed to secure a stay-of-execution to stop Rivers from collecting VAT from businesses in the state, Mr. Wike hinted his victory would affect states’ with low revenue.

Sleep: Nearly half population in short supply - ITREALMS

Study@ITREALMS:

Does this sound familiar? You stay late at the office to work on a project and decide to get a few drinks with friends before you go home. Before bed, you cozy up on the couch to squeeze in one last episode of Game of Thrones. Before you know it, the alarm rings, prompting you to get up and prepare for the gym.

If this sounds like a regular Tuesday, you're probably one of the millions of Americans who don’t get enough sleep. Why? As we’re faced with a multitude of commitments and distractions every day, we allow ourselves to de-prioritize and neglect sleep.

We got curious about how Americans snooze, so we partnered with Thrive Global and Axios to quiz respondents from our Audience panel directly using SurveyMonkey.

What are you curious about? Use SurveyMonkey Audience to use surveys to ask anyone pretty much anything.

Here’s what we’ve learned:

Nearly half of Americans aren’t sleeping well, and they know it

Only 47% of our respondents get between 7-9 hours of sleep a night. Nearly that same percentage of overall respondents say they get "the right amount" of sleep.

In spite of the fact that nearly half of our respondents knowingly skimp on sleep, the majority—86% of respondents—say they recognize the importance of a good night's rest.

So why is the amount of sleep we get lacking when we know how important it is? Blame it on work. And our phones aren’t helping either.

Choosing work over sleep

Nearly half of our respondents—49%—believe that sacrificing sleep is necessary in order to be successful in their industry.

But does sleeping less actually lead to better performance at work?

Research tells us it doesn’t, as a lack of sleep has been shown to substantially increase your chances of getting sick, impair your ability to think creatively and critically, and ultimately limit your salary growth over time.

The desire to stay connected

Notifications from colleagues, friends, and family can feel important—leading Americans to keep their phones close by, even when they’re asleep.

Over 70% of respondents sleep with their phones near their beds, with the figure at 90% among Millennials. Even more striking is that 83% of respondents who work more than 50 hours a week sleep with their phones near their bed.

It looks like technology is quite literally getting in the way of Americans’ dreams.

Take the quiz yourself to see how you score. It may be just the wake-up call you need to unplug a bit—whether it's from your job or from your devices.

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Half world population now use Internet revealed ITU - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

More than half of the world’s population is now using the Internet, according to the 2018 global and regional Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) estimates by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), reports ITREALMS.

ITU which is the United Nations specialized agency for information and communication technologies (ICTs), ITREALMS gathered, estimated that at the end of 2018, 51.2 per cent of the global population, or 3.9 billion people, will be using the Internet.

The Secretary General, ITU, Mr. Houlin Zhao, made this known to ITREALMS, asserting that ITU’s global and regional estimates for 2018 are a pointer to the great strides the world is making towards building a more inclusive global information society.

“By the end of 2018, we will surpass the 50/50 milestone for Internet use. This represents an important step towards a more inclusive global information society. However, far too many people around the world are still waiting to reap the benefits of the digital economy. We must encourage more investment from the public and private sectors and create a good environment to attract investments, and support technology and business innovation so that the digital revolution leaves no one offline,” he said.

Director of ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau, Brahima Sanou, said that the new 2018 estimates revealed that there continues to be a general upward trend in the access to and use of information and communication technologies.

“Access to telecommunication networks continues to increase, in particular in mobile connections. However, affordability should continue to be at the top of our priorities for the digital economy to become a reality for all,” Sanou said.

According to ITU, in developed countries, slow and steady growth increased the percentage of population using the Internet, from 51.3 per cent in 2005 to 80.9 per cent in 2018. In developing countries, growth has been much more sustained increasing from 7.7 per cent in 2005 to 45.3 per cent at the end of 2018.
ITREALMS also gathered that of all ITU regions, the strongest growth was reported in Africa, where the percentage of people using the Internet increased from 2.1 per cent in 2005 to 24.4 per cent in 2018. Equally, ITU disclosed that the regions with the lowest growth rates were Europe, with 79.6 per cent, and the Americas, with 69.6 per cent of the population using the Internet.

In the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region, 71.3 per cent will be using the Internet; 54.7 per cent in the Arab States and 47 per cent in the Asia-Pacific region.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Nigeria’s population requires commensurate economic growth says MeCAM - ITREALMS Online

ITREALMS:

Nigeria must multiply its efforts to strengthen the economy and provide all the necessary social and physical infrastructure to keep up with the country's explosive population growth, the Media Centre Against Child Malnutrition (MeCAM) has said, reports ITRealms.

MeCAM is a media advocacy group against child malnutrition and determines to strengthen the agro-nutrition capacity and interest of its members professionally in contribution to nation-building, for emancipation from extreme hunger especially in children, women and society, centred on Goal 2 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

MeCAM National Coordinator, Remmy Nweke said in a press statement commemorating the World Population Day that Nigeria’s estimated 192m population is not sustainable and may well worsen its security challenges and leave more children malnourished, unless it is matched by commensurate economic growth and infrastructure.

“Such infrastructure must include affordable and accessible medical facilities that would not only boost public health but will offer all the assistance for family planning to check unwanted pregnancy and keep population in check as well as have healthy children,” according to the statement.

“Overpopulation begets insecurity especially on food and put pressure on family fiscal economy, could lead to school dropouts, and lack of money for balance diet which is key to effective breastfeeding by mothers.

“Importantly, MECAM urges the government to make life more abundant for the people by working on all the fundamentals of the economy that would support its population. Also, we call on the governments to double their efforts on education, health care and access to other basic needs so that the rising population would be an asset instead of liabilities and source of security threats.”

Commemorated every July 11, the World Population Day was established by the then-Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989, an outgrowth of the interest generated by the Day of Five Billion, which was observed on 11 July 1987. The objective is to focus attention on the urgency and importance of population issues. This year’s commemoration was themed “Family Planning is a Human Right”.

Uj. N. Dominic/ED, Ops

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Nigeria’s population explosion, a time bomb on FP - Fanimo

ITREALMS:

The recently proclaimed 198 million populations by the office of National Bureau of Statistics, has been described as a waiting time bomb if not well managed, especially for family planning capable of engendering positive development, reports ITRealms.

This caution was sounded by the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Leadership Newspapers, Mr Dele Fanimo, when he received at the Lagos office, a delegation of Family Planning Media Advocacy Working Group (FPMAWG) led by its chairperson, Mrs. Chioma Umeha.

For him, the latest Nigerian population at 198 million has an implication on the country in all aspects of the economy, decrying that a session of this population, is the size of some African countries within the sub-region.

“A quarter of this population is almost twice the population of Republic of Benin. The central of this is uncontrolled birth,” he said.

Fanimo pointed out that the implication of the Nigerian huge population could lead to increase in crime and prostitution, stressing that with social dislocation associated with such population explosion, results to underdevelopment and a failed nation.

“Uncontrolled birth is unacceptable because when a man has a big family he cannot cater for, he will have to deny child A to send child B to school, leading to more miscreants, thieves, thugs and hoodlums on our streets and the vicious circle continues,” he said.

In addition, Fanimo described population explosion as a huge problem, for the promotion of family planning, insisting that families must ensure they have children they can cater for.

Earlier in her address, the working group chairperson, Mrs. Umeha, noted that Family Planning (FP) has been a worldwide issue, hence the reason why world leaders, local and international donors and advocates from around the world gathered at an FP Summit in London on July 11, 2017 to discuss efforts to reach the FP 2020 goals and ensure that more women and girls around the world are able to plan their families and their future.

Nigerian government, she pointed out, made a commitment to increase the Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR) from 15 percent to 27 percent by 2020 at that meeting, stressing that government at both the Federal and State have shown commitment to the provision of free FP services to the entire women of child-bearing age in the country.

The reason for this is not far-fetched as different statistics and surveys conducted around the world, have revealed that FP program when effectively done, can lead to a reduction of maternal deaths by up to 34 percent and newborn death by about 15 per cent.

The chairperson was accompanied during the advocacy visit by some members of FP Media Working Group, including Chioma Obinna of Vanguard Newspapers, and Remmy Nweke of DigitalSENSE Africa Media, publishers of NaijaAgroNet and ITRealms; Pastor Olusegun Omotayo Adeboye as well as Mrs Shotomiwa Olubunmi, both of Lagos Advocacy Working Group (LAWG) and Public Health Sustainable Advocacy Initiative(PHSAI), while the acting General Manager, Southern Operation at Leadership, Mrs. Angela Tony Iji, was also on attendance.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Facebook unveils population density map data

ITRealms:

Facebook has unveiled its Population Density Map data to the public, reports ITRealms.

In unveiling this, the Strategic Products Partnerships Manager, Facebook, Emeka Afigbo, noted that government policymakers, academics and local organisations will all benefit from access to this rich dataset.

According to him, the dataset comes with potential applications such as socio-economic research, infrastructure planning, and risk assessment for natural disasters.

"To start, Facebook has shared data sets for Malawi, South Africa, Ghana, Haiti, and Sri Lanka, and they can be found on the website of CIESIN at Columbia University. More countries will be added over the coming months," he said.

Meanwhile, the first FbStart Meetup in Africa held in South Africa with over 150 developers and entrepreneurs.

During this half-day event, ITRealms reports that attendees met the Facebook team, learnt about Facebook platform tools for developers, and saw how Facebook works with mobile app start-ups through the FbStart programme.

“It would not be possible for us to accomplish our mission of making the world more open and connected without the help of developers and other partners in our community,”  Afigbo said, stressing that they were delighted by the excellent turnout for the workshop and excited by the possibilities of the great ideas seen from the delegates at the FbStart event.

Nenye Dom/GEE

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140,000 staff inadequate to serve 21m Lagosian

 ITRealms

The Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Akinwumi Ambode has said that e-government has become indispensible in the administration of the state as 140,000 staff is grossly inadequate to serve a population of 21 million, ITRealms reports.

The Governor was speaking, as special Guest at the 2015 edition of the Nigeria Internet Group (NIG) Conference and Exhibition which held at Goldengate Restaurant, Ikoyi, Lagos. He stated that the ICT sector has achieved a phenomenal growth and stressed the state government’s readiness to partner with NIG as the state remains in the forefront of e-governance with the Oracle Portal.

“In the last decade the internet has changed our way of life and the way things are done, spanning individual lifestyle, manufacturing and industry as well as governance. The traditional economy and commercial system have given way to a new economic platform of online merchandising and logistics management,” Ambode said.

 
The internet, he said, has reduced the world to a global village even as the ICT sector has achieved a phenomenal growth, providing employment opportunities , acting as a platform for content and application development in manufacturing and industry, security, agriculture, education, commercial and financial transactions. He called for collaboration for infrastructural support in order to achieve internet penetration to the last mile.

He said it is a fact that as a nation we have not been able to maximise the use of the internet as a multifunctional resource, poor internet service to end users, high cost of internet relative to the developed world and use of the internet for fraudulent activities are obvious challenges.

Represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry Science and Technology, Lagos, Abdulraman Mustapha, Abode, ITRealms gathered, said as responsible government with the population of Lagos state and with inadequate staff it is essential to embrace e-service in every sector of government activity even as the state is bent on having one single health record. He thanked the NIG for initiating and sustaining the conference and exhibition, adding that the state government requires the advice of NIG in terms of how to implement its e-service engagements. He said the government of Lagos State will like to have a copy of the deliberation which will guide the government to achieve a regulatory framework.

ITRealms reports that this year’s NIG conference has the theme “Internet Penetration, the way forward,” Ambode said “the Lagos State Government in consultation with Association of Telecom Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), the State has reduced the right of way by 85 per cent”. On that note he declared the conference and exhibition open.

NIG, a non-for  profit, Non-government organisation was formed in 1995 to promote the internet as a tool for personal and national development, to promote provision of internet access for all Nigerians, to sensitise government about the potential of the internet as a critical tool for economic development, to promote the development of local internet content through the adoption of internet applications, such as e-commerce, e-entertainment, assist in the formation of relevant government policies affecting the internet, etc.

Today its major focus is to ensure that Nigerians adopt the internet as a platform to create jobs for themselves, hence the launch of a programme called Internet for Jobs Initiative (141).

Cyriacus Nnaji/GEE

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Pix:Akinwumi Ambode