Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that Nigeria will become the world’s third-largest country if nothing is done to control its population growth.
He said that if the nation’s leaders fail to start getting it right now, “we will not get it right by the year 2050.”
Obasanjo spoke on Sunday 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.’
Noting that the country must be serious on how to manage its population, Obasanjo said:
“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.
“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 2050.”
According to the former president, population could either be an asset or a liability.
“If the nation does not make adequate preparations then the country will pay for its over-population both now and in the future, he said.
He added, “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 is living within your nation.”
Responding to a question on mentorship, Obasanjo said service to the fatherland, integrity, loyalty, and good moral standing as some of the virtues that could sustain them in their varied career paths.