Preps for population census on course

The Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (Zimstat) yesterday said 84 percent of the country had been covered so far under the field mapping exercise, aimed at dividing the country into Enumeration Areas (EA) on the basis of administrative divisions and the 2002 EA maps.
This will be used to produce updated EA and Supervision Area maps.

Zimstat said various measures had also been adopted to ensure that the process would produce results acceptable to Zimbabweans.
“The office carried out a pilot census exactly a year before the census that is in August last year to test the instruments (questionnaires and manuals), which are going to be used during the actual census as well as the logistics and field operations.

“The office ensured that the field conditions are identical to the actual enumeration thereby allowing for a full appraisal of accessibility and other logistical problems in advance,” Zimstat said in a statement yesterday.
The organisation said it had also developed a quality assurance strategy that would be used by all supervisors and enumerators.
“This involves the comparison of field mapping number of households and number of persons per enumeration area figures against the actual enumeration figures to establish whether there have been discrepancies (undercount or overcount). If there are any discrepancies, then these will be addressed accordingly,” Zimstat said.

The national statistics body said as has happened in previous censuses, Zimbabweans living abroad would not be counted.
“The 2012 population census does not differ much from the previous censuses in terms of methodology to be employed.

“The census will be conducted on a mainly de facto basis, that is, a person will be enumerated where they will be found with reference to the census night. Zimbabweans in the diaspora are not going to be counted,” Zimstat said.

The information that would be gathered during the exercise includes geographical identification particulars like province, district or ward of origin, demographic characteristics that include sex, age, possession of birth certificate, citizenship and ethnic affiliation.