ISLAMABAD: The Census Advisory Committee has recommended that de-jure methodology may be adopted for the upcoming 7th Population and Housing Census for comparability with previous census, besides conducting the pilot census in all provinces and test run the whole process, for risk management and disaster recovery as the next census would be digitally conducted.
On 29 December 2020, the Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives (MoPD&SI) constituted a Committee for Recommendation and Adoption of Best Practices for upcoming Population Census (six members) under the chairmanship of deputy chairman Planning Commission.
The committee was reconstituted on 22nd February 2021 and more members (12 members) were added from relevant organisations, as well as, renowned demographers. The mandate of the Committee was to review the process, data collection and field operation methodologies used for Census-2017 and give recommendations for adoption in the upcoming census.
The Committee proposed following recommendations for the 7th Population and Housing Census:
a. Keeping in view the practices in the region it is proposed that de-jure methodology may be adopted for the upcoming 7th Population and Housing Census for comparability with previous census.
b. Clarity on the concept of “usual residents” must be devised, and comprehensive trainings should be imparted to all enumerators for correct and complete coverage.
The committee recommended that the questionnaire should be comprised of most important/ relevant indicators as per data requirement. More specifically:
a. The Census questionnaire should be strictly in relevance to the objectives of Census and as short as possible to increase the quality of data.
b. Two questionnaires may be designed: 1st House listing Form - 4 to 6 Questions, II. 2nd Main Census Form (Short Form) - 10 to 12 Questions on Demographic Characteristics, i.e., age, gender, religion, ethnicity, nationality, disability, migration, literacy and education attainments, etc.
Housing Characteristics, i.e., number of rooms, electricity, water, gas, toilet, construction material, gender of household owner, etc should be noted.
It is further recommended that a Dedicated Technical Committee may be constituted by involving all relevant stakeholders to finalize the details of the questionnaire.
The Committee recommends that Pilot Census must be conducted before the 7th Population and Housing Census. This will help identify ambiguities and provide an opportunity to test the methodology.
Further as it is suggested to conduct the next census “Digitally,” therefore, it is imperative to conduct the pilot in all provinces and test run the whole process, for risk management and disaster recovery.
There should be a comprehensive Communication, Advocacy and Publicity Campaign for the 7th Population Census with involvement of locals, Mimbar/ masjid, Hujra/ Bhaitak, etc, besides Development and distribution of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) material – Interactive Videos, Census logo, Census Brochure, Colour posters, Short Songs with Census Message lyrics, census slogans, Merchandising, Celebrities message through Media.
The Committee reviewed that approximately 200,000 field staff was hired for the 6th Population and Housing Census-2017, with ten percent reserve staff. It recommends that:
a. Increase the reserve staff from 10% to 15%: Involve more female enumerators for quality data collection and option of using LHW may be explored as they are usually local and have better understanding of the socio context of area especially for data collection of sample form. b. Involvement of Graduate level students along with teachers may be made for training, data collection and monitoring. Students may be hired from all over the Pakistan through Higher Education Commission (HEC).
To ensure that the field staff is well trained and understands the questionnaire, the following has been recommended by the Committee: a. Inclusive Training: Training should be imparted to all individual involved in the Census operations. It should give clarity about all concepts and definition of the questionnaire. Training may be imparted through group of trainees, i.e., for IT, Media and for hard copy/ manual training.
b. Training including Technological Interventions: Training manual with audio-video clips for each question will be developed to better understand the theme of the questions. Separate video films and presentation for each level may be prepared for training of field staff, supervisory staff and senior management of provincial level.
Involvement of more female trainers is recommended to better convey the definition and concept of questions of long form during the filed operation to increase the response rate.
Mechanism for field training monitoring and evaluation must be developed so that field data collection can be completed, successfully. The monitoring will enable to filter the trainers suitable to be master trainer and to appoint supervisors in the field.
The Committee recommended that: a. Multi-mode Data Collection Models (Self-Enumeration, Tablet Based and Paper Based, etc.) should be used for the 7th Population and Housing Census. b. Registers may be identified (such as Population Register (PR), Education Register, Employment and Unemployment and Building and Dwelling (BDR)) and updated, so that they may also be used for 8th Population Census.
A sound Monitoring and Quality Control System may be devised for successful execution and completion of field work. It should ensure complete coverage and real time mentoring. Geo tagging of all structures should be done in every Census Block like household, hospitals, small medium and large establishments, religious places, educational institutions and economic activities based in houses (cottage industries), etc.
For effective monitoring: a. Well trained and equipped staff must be involved to organize a complete monitoring system at every stage. b. An internet-based dashboard system must be developed for real time monitoring and to cross-check the data by the supervisors and rectify it immediately. c. A complaint centre may be launched to resolve the issues and it should be headed by the District Commissioner.
To increase credibility of the Census results and build confidence of stakeholders, it is strongly recommended that PES should be conducted. Efforts must be made to design the PES during the planning process with sufficient budget and adequate methodology.
Demographic Analysis: A committee of demographers and researchers may be set up for demographic trend analysis. The demographics should be included in the training material for better knowledge and understanding of the enumerator.
Keeping in view the above practices, it is proposed that for effective coordination, management and monitoring, a National Census Coordination Centre (N3C) (along the lines of National Command and Operation Centre - NCOC) may be established. The Centre should oversee the Census process and take appropriate and timely policy decisions.
It will also help ensure credibility and ownership of the whole process. The National Coordination Centre will work under DCPC with all Chief Ministers/ Chief Sectaries and representation of Law enforcement agencies for appropriate and timely decisions.
Since, the 7th Population and Housing Census is proposed to be conducted digitally first time in the country, therefore, Dedicated Census Support Centres should be established at tehsil level. This will help keep the process smooth, ensure availability of the system 24/7, and provide the end-user and field-enumerator the support they may need.
These centres will act as backbone for Census field operations having mainly the responsibility of handing/ taking of handheld devices, installation and configuration of applications, etc. Moreover, they will provide support in the field. The Census Support Centres will also act as Control Room and Complaint Inquiry Office.
It is proposed that dashboards may be designed for management and other stakeholders to enable effective monitoring of Census operations and prompt decision making. A National Census Coordination Centre (N3C) should be equipped with well-designed multi-purpose dashboards for monitoring, trend analysis and day-to-day decision making for successful completion of the National task.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022
Comments
Comments are closed.