A new website will improve censuses across the continent by sharing innovations to boost efficiency, timeliness of results and accuracy.
The Census Hub site created by the African Centre for Statistics (ACS) aims to facilitate census information sharing, learning, and collaboration.
It will bring together best practice guidance and information on the latest tools and technologies for digital census taking. It will also help coordinate assistance available to statistical offices from partnering agencies.
As well as supporting improved use of technology in the 2020 census round, it is hoped the hub will provide a wealth of information that will help member states in planning censuses for the 2030 round.
Molla Asmare, an ACS statistician who led the launch of the Census Hub said: “We created this virtual space because there was a lack of continent-wide networks of professionals and information sharing to ensure African countries build continually the capacity to adopt new methods and tools.
“Only when such networks exist and coordinated approaches to African statistical capacity-building are entrenched will there be continent-wide collective progress in census taking.”
The Census Hub will feature information on a range of topics including but not limited to census planning, mapping, questionnaires, good practices, fieldwork management, communication, dissemination, capacity building, innovating tools, data processing and archiving.
This launch comes as nations across the continent begin making use of tablets and smartphones to undertake their first digital censuses. Such a shift in census taking requires retraining, mobilising resources and partnership with national stakeholders such as telecom operators and international organisations for innovation and cooperation.
ACS has also organised a series of workshops on various areas of census operation areas to support this shift and strengthen the capacity of census agencies to share experiences for adopting new technology, best practices.
However, this new collaborative platform can only be a success with participation and collaboration from member states and stakeholders working across Africa.
To find out more and register, visit: https://ecastats.uneca.org/africacensushub