Census: Listing of structures begin
The listing of structures and landed properties for the 2021 Population and Housing Census (PHC) commenced yesterday.
The listing will pave the way for the enumeration, which starts at midnight of June 27.
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According to Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), the first seven days of the field data collection for the census had been devoted to the listing of structures, which involves enumerators locating every structure in an enumeration area and assigning unique serial numbers to the structures and collecting some basic information on the structures and their occupants, if there are any.
During the listing, a serial number, preceded by 2021 PHC, is written in chalk on the external wall of every structure that will be listed.
An enumeration area is the smallest geographical area with a well-defined boundary and features that is assigned to an enumerator which can easily be canvassed and enumerated during the data collection period.
Each enumeration area has been assigned one primary enumerator, who is responsible for listing all structures and enumerating all households in his or her enumeration area.
Accra’s exercise
When the Daily Graphic went round some parts of Accra yesterday, enumerators were on the ground listing structures in their assigned areas.
One of them, Mr Pascal Wisdom, who was operating in the Ablekuma West District, said the thrust of the exercise was to take stock of all landed properties in the country to help determine the number of structures census officials would be visiting when the counting began on Census Night, June 27.
"We are ‘chalking’, or what you may call listing, all structures across the country to help identify all the structures census officials will visit when the counting begins," he said.
He said the listing would be followed by the enumeration phase to enumerate (count and collect information on) all persons and a post-enumeration survey to evaluate the census.
For the 2021 PHC, the country has been delineated into over 51,000 enumeration areas to facilitate complete coverage.
According to the GSS, ancillary geo-spatial data layers (satellite imagery, building footprints, scores of difficulty) were used to validate and complement the census mapping work (including the use of interactive maps).
A list of over 131,000 localities across the country has also been compiled.
Number of censuses
The 2021 census will be the sixth after independence.
The first five post-independent censuses were conducted in 1960, 1970, 1984, 2000 and 2010.
However, before independence, there were six population censuses conducted in the then Gold Coast in 1891, 1901, 1911, 1921, 1931 and 1948.
Technology
The 2021 PHC is leveraging technology to implement several interventions towards ensuring complete and accurate coverage.
The GSS mentioned, among other things, the elaborate and skilful use of geographic information system (GIS) technology and geospatial resources ensure, including collecting the Ghana Post coordinates of all structures and ensuring that enumerators know how and where to locate households and persons for enumeration.
There are also elaborate arrangements to identify and enumerate the population by specific residential categories, including hard-to-reach or enumerate groups.
Besides, during data collection, real-time monitoring and continuous data validation will be undertaken at the various levels of operations (supervisory area, district, region and national) to continuously assess data quality and especially check for gaps, overlaps and inconsistencies.