Registers and records have always been an effective way to keep track of numbers. From schools to workplaces and even supermarkets, records show the state of things and solutions are created based on the information.
The national census is an exercise where population is systematically counted and additional information (like age, race, occupation etc) is acquired and recorded.
Zimbabwe’s population is projected to be nearly 17 million as shown by the data gathered from the census mapping exercise conducted by ZimStats in 2021. The exercise was in preparation of this year’s national census in April. The census mapping exercise revealed that the current population of Zimbabwe is projected to be 16. 9 million (8.8 million females and 8.1 million males).
The 2022 national census will run from the 21st to the 30th of April 2022. It has a budget of about 3 Billion Zim dollars (about US$98 million). This includes (but is not limited to) recruiting and training enumerators, masks, sanitizers and acquiring 300 motorcycles for reaching rural areas.
The census’s preliminary results are usually released two years after the census but this time they might be released earlier due to new recording systems being used. Enumerators will now be armed with tablets and when conducting data collection they will be expected to feed data into the national server by day end. This new system will use the Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) technique in capturing data from members of the public.
Ms Memory Chidemo (Zimstat Public Relations and Communications Manager) told the Chronicle “We now have the enumeration areas and we are now moving into training for the level one teams. Starting this month, we will be training national supervisors and trainers who will train the enumerators. Most of the recruitment is being done from the public service. And all the recruitment is being done this month for the enumerators, the supervisors and information communication technology experts,”
The national census provides much needed information for all sectors of business and government. It helps to project if available resources are adequate and helps set targets and understand the demographics of the population in various areas of the country.