Despite the increasing cost of living and growing hardship faced across Nigeria, the population of the country is estimated to hit 450 million by 2050, the Association of the Advancement of Family Planning (AAFP) has said.
AAFP noted that should the currently fertility rate of the country remain unchanged, there would be a population surge in Nigeria.
Speaking at the 8th Nigeria Family Planning Pre-Conference media roundtable which took place in Abuja, the chairman of the AAFP Management Committee, Ejike Orji, said that Nigeria’s population growth is currently at the minimum of four million persons annually.
According to Orji, this population growth is increasing geometrically and might exceed four million to reach six or 10 million people per year.
He said, “This year it’s four million, next year it might be 4.2 million, and it could eventually reach six or even 10 million annually.”
Citing some of the initiatives undertaken by countries like India and China, Orji said both nations – known to have been improvised about a century ago – strategically improved their economy by reducing fertility rates and investing in their youth.
Orji warned that, at a currently fertility rate of 4.8 per cent, Nigeria could possibly face severe economic and development challenges by 2030, if not addressed.
