adminPopulation counts have been done since the biblical times. Jesus Christ was born at a time when some form of a census was being done by Roman authorities.
A population census is very important to governments and planners as it determines the allocation of resources based on the number of people in a particular town, city, district and province. Since numbers are important in politics, controversy has also arisen in population censuses, not just in Zimbabwe but in other countries, especially when the numbers released by national officials do not meet the expectations of local leadership.
The political leadership in Bulawayo disputed the results of the last census in 2002 saying that the 676 000 people counted in Bulawayo were less than the one million people they believed to be living in the city at that time. According to that census, the population of Bulawayo grew by just 56 000 from 1992.
Even in advanced economies, population census results are not always readily accepted. In the United States, some local officials disputed results of a census held in 2010 claiming that there had been massive undercounting of people in some states and cities.
Local officials in that country claimed that thousands of people were missed during the counting.
Among the authorities in the US who disputed the population results was the New York City which expressed disbelief that its population of 8 175 133 people went up by just 167 000 in 10 years.
Taking cognisance of the controversy brought about by the politics of numbers, we urge the Zimbabwe National Statistical Agency to make thorough preparations for the census, to be held from 18 August to 27 August to ensure that virtually every corner of the country is reached by enumerators so that every person is counted.
A lot of resources, both material and human, have been invested in the exercise such that people expect a credible census which will be accepted by all the people. According to Zimstat officials, more than 30 000 people have been hired as enumerators while 700 vehicles would be used in transporting them.
All these resources cannot be allowed to go to waste by coming out with figures that will be disputed or not accepted by some.
The public must also co-operate with census officials. We hope that people will avoid unnecessary journeys during this time so that they are captured during the count.
It is also important that enumerators are given the right information as this will enable the Government to allocate resources in a just manner.
While we do not want to pre-empt the outcome of the census, we hope that local officials will accept the results of the census, which will be done by professionals trained to do the job.
In past censuses, the count was based on who slept at a particular place on a particular night. This obviously discounts the hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Zimbabweans who have left the country since 2002 in search of a better life after the economy went into a tailspin largely due to economic sanctions imposed by the West.
For those likely to dispute the results of the census, it is important that they remember the large Zimbabwean community abroad which is not going to be counted during this census, while the HIV and Aids pandemic has played a part in decimating the country’s population. Almost every family in Zimbabwe knows of someone working in the Diaspora and someone who has died from Aids-related diseases. This means that the numbers that emerge from the census might be skewed and not according to expectations of some.
Online Reporter