Experts have expressed alarm over Nigeria's rapidly growing population, projecting it could reach 450 million by 2050 without urgent interventions.
The concern was highlighted during a media roundtable ahead of the eighth Nigeria Family Planning Conference.
Organized by the Association for the Advancement of Family Planning (AAFP) in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the event emphasized the critical need for enhanced family planning initiatives.
Stakeholders in Abuja discussed strategies to address population growth and its implications for health, education, and sustainable development.
Speaking at the event, Chairman of the Management Committee, AAFP, Ejike Oji, said Nigeria’s fertility rate is quite high and that it needs to be reduced to about four percent.
Mr Ejike, who is also the Chairman of the Local Organising Committee for the conference said if the country continues with the current fertility rate, its population will almost double by the year 2050.
“Every year, we add about four million people to our population. However, this increase is geometric, meaning the numbers will rise exponentially over time— four million this year, 4.2 million next year, and potentially 10 million annually in the future,” he said.
Mr Oji referenced China and India, the world’s two most populous countries, as models for managing population growth.