By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
The National Bureau of Statistics has commenced training of a total of 2,800 ad-hoc staff for the forthcoming business sample census in the country.
The exercise which is going on simultaneously across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory is geared towards providing a statistical data of all formal and informal business establishments across the country.
In his opening remarks on Thursday in Abuja, Statistician General of the Federation, Dr. Yemi Kale said the census also known as Economic census is primarily targeted at providing valuable information to potential investors including the economic viability of business number of employees as well as the nature of business.
He said the Training of Enumerators (EoE) is crucial at the states of data. Collection so they will be equipped with the knowledge and processes of the survey.
He added that “The result of the exercise is important for statistical operations and policy making in Nigeria particularly because it has not been conducted for two decades.
“It can easily help government identify and locate establishments in different sectors of the economy for targeted support and also the date can be used in designing better employment generation programmes and boost government’s revenue drive by going after establishments operating under the radar.
Kale urged them to ensure accuracy while collecting data as technology will be deployed to ensure smooth operations during the exercise.
Also speaking, the NBS state officer for the FCT, Mrs. Rakiya Mohammed said a total of 2,800 ad-hoc staff were selected to conduct the census survey while the FCT has 84 participants
She added that the training is expected to last for three days as they are expected to be deployed by Friday.
