Ghana Statistical Service to start national census on June 28

According to the Deputy Government Statistician, David Yenukwa Kombat the GSS has initiated the process of recruiting field personnel and employing the services of 70,000 enumerators in districts across the country in the lead-up to the census.

The GSS had initially fixed March 2020 for the commencement of the Population and Housing Census.

In an interview with Daily Graphic, he said they changed the date after they completed field census mapping exercise, which showed that there is the need for the redesigning of technological interventions which will enhance accuracy and timely release of the census results.

Mr Kombat explained that the GSS would decentralise field operations and also make available a central database on its website for the recruitment of field personnel and enumerators.

“Every district is going to recruit its own field personnel and enumerators. In districts where we realise that many people have not applied, we will move there physically to engage them in order to ensure that we get the best people to do the work.”

He said the GSS has also set up district census documentation committees to help with the pre-enumeration processes. The district coordinating directors are the administrative heads of the committees.

He further stated that the regional census documentation committees would ensure that the census was carried out smoothly in all the regions.

Mr Kombat said they were engaging stakeholders who will become ambassadors of the exercise. These stakeholders include members of academia, the clergy and community leaders. He said this will ensure that the public participates effectively.

Meanwhile, the Executive Director of the National Population Council (NPC), Dr Leticia Adelaide Appiah, entreated the to be interested in getting counted.

“A census is used to formulate developmental projects and policies governing a community. As it is in the field of health, if you are not diagnosed, you cannot be given the right drug to fight the specific illness you are encountering,” she added.

The last census in Ghana was done 10 years ago.