Documenting Nigerian Census Data on Wikidata: My Contributor Experience

Recently, I had the opportunity to contribute to a Wikimedia project focused on documenting census data on Wikidata. This project was organized by the Igbo Wikimedians User Group and led by Udehb and Macocobovi. This experience has been both insightful and enriching, and I would like to share some highlights and observations from my contribution journey.

Census Documentation Overview

The project involved documenting census data from Nigeria’s 1991 and 2006 population censuses. These datasets provide critical demographic information that helps paint a picture of Nigeria’s population trends over time.

Observations from the Census Data

While inputting data from the 1991 census, I noticed an interesting pattern regarding gender distribution: in most states during that period, the proportion of females was higher than that of males. This was evident in the life expectancy or population percentages of women compared to men.

However, when I compared this with data from the 2006 census, I was surprised to find a shift; the number of males had become higher than females in many states. This reversal was unexpected and sparked my curiosity as it potentially points to social, economic, or health dynamics that could be further researched.

Another point of note was the difference in administrative divisions between the two censuses. In 1991, many states and local government areas had not yet been created. By 2006, new states and local government areas had been established, reflecting Nigeria’s evolving political landscape.

This meant the census data had to be interpreted carefully, considering the changes in state and local government boundaries.

Reflection and Impact

Contributing to this project gave me a deeper appreciation of how census data can reveal demographic and administrative changes over time. It also showed me the power of collaborative knowledge platforms like Wikidata in preserving and making such data accessible for research and public use.

Most importantly, this contribution sparked questions and areas for further research; particularly the gender distribution shifts between 1991 and 2006.

I’m glad to have been part of this project and look forward to continuing to contribute to Wikimedia’s efforts to document and share important data about Nigeria and beyond.