Population Census

Census Official information about population is carried out by using a census. To be valid, census data must: be government sponsored, be taken at regular intervals, be taken at the same time throughout the country, include everyone.

Census Census data is used to plan for the future. Housing needs can be identified. Education needs - e.g. likely demand for nursery places, need for extra teachers who are bilingual. Health needs - e.g. provision for the elderly.

Census problems Language Literacy Transport Nomadic Peoples Illegal immigrants Street people Cost Trust Conflict

Language Language can be a problem in countries like India where many languages are used. The government has to provide census forms in several languages or use enumerators literate in more than one language to translate and fill in the forms for people. enumerator - someone who collects census data by visiting individual homes

Literacy Literacy is a problem because if people cannot read and write the enumerators must fill in the forms for them. Some people fill in the forms incorrectly.

Poor Transport In areas with a poor transport network it is difficult to get enumerators and postal census’ to the area especially if the area is mountainous or forested.

Nomadic Peoples Nomads traditionally wander from place to place finding areas where they can feed their animals or hunt for food. This means they may be difficult to find or they move from one country to another.

Illegal Migrants Illegal migrants will avoid contact with officials as they do not want to be deported.

Homeless or street people As street people move around they can be difficult to account for - some cities have special teams of enumerators.

Cost A census can cost a lot of money to carry out. Forms have to be printed and distributed, collected and analysed. People (enumerators) may have to help people with language differences or literacy problems to complete their forms. For LEDCs a census may be difficult to fund.

Trust Where people do not trust those who are collecting the information they may try not to fill in forms (fear of repression or persecution) Some may falsify information on the form.

Conflict Where there are wars or violent conflicts in areas it is difficult or impossible to collect the information due to the violence, threats, fear and the changing situations through death and forced migration. Trust is also another major factor in this.