Mandatory Question to Avoid Double Count in 2017 Census
One of the mandatory questions that will be asked by enumerators who will conduct the 2017 Census from tomorrow is ‘Where did you sleep on September 17, 2017?’
This is to avoid double counts. The question, however, is with an exception to those who worked the night shift on the specified date.
Today marks the official reference date for the beginning of the 2017 Census. The team will begin their work from tomorrow
Divisional Census co-ordinator Central, Kelera Nokelevu confirmed this.
The Fiji Bureau of Statistics officials have teams dispersed around the country to collate information for the census.
The team of 2156 enumerators will be wearing their formal identification cards, reflector jackets with the census logo and their tablets for efficient information collation. Enumerators have been given three weeks to complete the census process.
“Those in boarding schools, correctional centres and other respective institutions will be enumerated at their respective institutions; they are referred to it as non-private dwellings (NPD),” she said. “Enumerators need to finish the census process in the first two weeks while the third is for revisting those that may not have been home or need to give in more information.”
The Fiji Bureau of Statistics has invested around $1.2 million to purchase 3100 tablets to make work easier for the enumerators.
“At the end of the census we should be able to tell the planners or the policy makers that these are the number of qualified persons in Fiji in this particular field and they are still without jobs,” she said. The 2007 census had recorded Fiji’s population as 837,271 and another population update exercise was done in 2014 which recorded an increase to 865,611 people.
The total projected population is 872,948 based on the two inter-censal period 1996 and 2007 Censuses.
Unaisi Kini, 35, said: “In the last census I remember we were asked about how many people were in the house and also what type of utilities we have at home.”