Former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has warned that the country’s geometric increase in population could become a full liability if not properly managed.
Obasanjo who observed that population could be an asset or a liability depending on how it is managed said except Nigeria begins to turn things around, its growing population could be a problem in the nearest future.
The former president made the submission in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital during a mentoring session with students of some selected schools across the country tagged “raising the next wave of innovative leaders through entrepreneurship.”
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He stated that Nigeria may become the third-largest country in the world by 2050 and the largest in the world by 3000 if current projections are considered.
Obasanjo however warned that if there is no corresponding socio-economic development, the population explosion can become a curse rather than a blessing for Nigeria.
He said, “When COVID-19 struck, I decided to take the vaccine. I was worried that it would be like Ebola, thank God it has not been as devastating as Ebola.
“We have moved from 120 million to over 200 million. We have added the population of France to our population and if we continue the way we are going, by the year 2050 we will be the third-largest country in the world.
“If we still continue, by the year 3000, we would be the largest country in the world.
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“What are we going to do to handle that, how are we going to handle that population? If we do not start getting it right now, we will not get it right by the year 2030.”
The former president however said what Nigeria needs to do is manage the population for the benefit of the citizens.
He recommended education and family planning as part of the solutions for the population challenge.
He said, “What we need to do is education about population management. Some people don’t like saying family planning, but whatever you do, you must manage your population to the benefit of all that are living within your nation.”
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