Uganda’s leading statistical agency, the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (Ubos), has reassured the public that cancelling the national housing and population census scheduled for 24-25 is not something to be overly concerned about.
The census had to be called off at the last minute due to delays in the required funding being released by the Finance Ministry on time.
The government is yet to announce the date for the next census. During the last census conducted in 2014 , the country’s population stood at 36 million and it is estimated that this number has since swelled to nearly 45 million.
According to Ubos, adequate preparations including procurement of materials and recruitment of enumerators could not be completed ahead of the commencement date as a result of the late disbursement.
However, the statistical body states this setback is only a minor bump in the road and another census date will be announced going forward to ensure the important exercise isn’t overly disrupted.
Ubos further explained that censuses are normally carried out over a 10 year cycle across other countries. Delaying Uganda’s census by a few months will therefore not drastically affect data trends or national planning that relies on the information gathered.
Authorities stated that proper procedures will be followed and stakeholders engaged before fixing a new date. Preparations will then resume to guarantee the new census schedule proceeds smoothly. In the meantime, Ubos assures the public it can still produce viable interim statistics using alternative data sources.
While acknowledging the need for timely funding approvals, Ubos is confident the small glitch will be resolved to put the national census back on track as per international standards without major complications or loss of credibility in the process.