Digital population census in Mar

Bangladesh is going to use digital enumeration maps and a unique geo-coding system for the first time in holding the 5th Population and Housing Census in the country.

Preparation is going on in full swing to hold the census in five days in March next year, said the chief of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).
Digital enumeration maps and the computerised geo-coding system will be used to collect the data and disseminate results simultaneously in hard and soft formats as well as on the web page, BBS Director General Md Shahjahan Ali Mollah said yesterday.
He said over 70,000 maps, made by aerial photographs, containing each mouja and union across the country would be used in conducting the census.
To conduct the census, Bangladesh will be divided into 3,30,000 enumeration areas, each with about 120 households, the BBS chief said, adding that it will engage 2,700 zonal officers, 530 upazila or thana coordinators, 120 district, 35 regional and 10 divisional coordinators.
There will be 60,000 supervisors to be selected from the local educated youths to work across the country. One supervisor will be engaged for six to seven enumerators in data collection.
The census will be conducted in three phases. The first one will be the main census for collecting basic characteristics of all households and population of the country.
In the second phase, post-enumeration quality check will be conducted to determine the coverage and content error of the main census.
Thirdly, a sample census-collection of data from about one percent household with a long questionnaire on detailed socio-economic characteristics will be done to supplement the main census.
Bangladesh has a long history of census. The first one was conducted in this territory in 1872. Since then censuses have been conducted in every 10 years.
The present government has taken a number of steps to strengthen the capacity of the state-run BBS to conduct the population and housing census.
The Statistics Division has been geared up to produce and provide better data, the DG said. “Everybody will have their photographs, fingerprints in digital format to promote digital Bangladesh by 2021.”
According to the election pledge of the government, he said, the prime minister is keen to establish a national population register (NPR) and citizens' database for everyone of the country.
Ensuring reliable data, he said, the US Census Bureau is providing modern software and scanner while the European Union (EU) and UNFPA are giving financial assistance side by side with the government.
Of the total funding for conducting the population and housing census-2011, Mollah said the government is providing about Tk 145 crore while the EU and UNFPA Tk 102 crore.
The amount is enough for holding the census-2011, not for NPR activities, he said.
The director general said census is considered a vital mechanism for providing an adequate data set on the population at all levels of the administrative units as it provides the basis for sound and informed policy making.
“Quality data is essential to improve people's lives,” he said, adding that it would provide population size, growth, composition and distribution for the projection of food, education, infrastructure, employment, healthcare and assessment of various other basic requirements as well as analysis of past, present and future growth of population.
The BBS chief said all types of print and electronic media will be used for census like television tell-off, radio jingle, newspaper supplement, discussion, census film, poster and banner and it will continue for six months starting from October 2010.