Prof. Samuel Kobina Annim
This year’s Population and Housing Census will cover an estimated population of 31.6 million.
The Head of the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), Prof. Samuel Kobina Annim, who revealed this, said the service would work with 2.6 million indicators in the exercise which would begin on the night of June 27, 2021.
He disclosed this when he officially handed activities regarding this year’s Population and Housing Census to the Western Regional Minister, Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, at a ceremony in Sekondi.
He explained that the census is regional and district based activity, hence the visit which would be followed by other regional tours.
He added that all the requisite logistics have been procured to ensure a smooth exercise, saying, “The 2021 Population and Housing Census would cost the government about GH¢521.3 million.”
Prof. Annim said 13 modules including demographics, housing, morbidity and education among others would be examined in the process.
He said ICT facilities have also been expanded to cover more areas as the government strives to ensure maximum digitisation of the economy.
The Government Statistician later had an information session with all the Regional Census Committee members to sensitise them on their roles and responsibilities during, before and after June 27, 2021.
Later, the Deputy Government Statistician, Araba Forson, visited the Chief of Yabiw in the Shama District, Nana Kwamena Wienu II, to galvanise support for effective grassroots awareness creation in the process.
She assured that everybody would be counted during the census night, and explained that counting would cover usual members of the household present, usual members absent, and visitors in a particular household to avoid double counting and reduce the margin of errors as well.
Census data, she noted, helps effective planning and development purposes.
The Chief of Yabiw, who is also the Acting Paramount Chief of the Shama Traditional Council, pledged their support to ensure the exercise is successful.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi