Ubos completes mapping of villages ahead of census
Ubos Executive Director Chris Mukiza (left) and his deputy, Mr Godfrey Nyabongo, at the launch of the Africa Statistics Week in Kampala on November 13, 2023. PHOTO/FRANK BAGUMA
What you need to know:
- The executive director of Ubos, Dr Chris Mukiza, yesterday told Daily Monitor after the launch of Africa Statistics Week in Kampala that they have done a lot of ground work in preparation for the census.
The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (Ubos) yesterday said it is on track to carry out the National Population and Housing Consensus 2024, with 87 percent of the mapping of areas (villages) so far completed.
The census night will take place on May 9 and 10, 2024 and the mapping exercise is one of the key preparatory activities undertaken prior to the actual counting of people. Census mapping is carried out to update boundaries, facilities such as schools and health centres, and households.
The executive director of Ubos, Dr Chris Mukiza, yesterday told Daily Monitor after the launch of Africa Statistics Week in Kampala that they have done a lot of ground work in preparation for the census.
“We have already mapped 87 percent of the country where the National Population and Housing Census is going to take place; so we are on course for this very important undertaking which guides the country in policy formulation and planning,” he said.
Dr Mukiza explained that the remaining 13 percent covers the 10 cities as well as Kampala Mukono and Wakiso.
He explained that these areas are densely populated, making mapping cities difficult.
He said they are procuring tablets that will be used by the enumerators.
“On November 30, the official launch of the NPHC activities will be done by the President at Kololo Independence Grounds,” he said.
Ubos is marking the Africa Statistics Week ahead of the African Statistics Day for this year, which will be celebrated on November 18.
African Statistics Day seeks to raise public awareness of the importance of statistics in all aspects of social and economic life.
Dr Mukiza said the African Statistics Day is being held under the theme, “Modernising data ecosystems to accelerate the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA): The role of official statistics and big data in the economic transformation and sustainable development of Africa.”
The Director of Government Citizen Interaction Centre, Ms Marcella Karekye, urged Ubos to make statistics more appealing to users.
“If the media are to do an effective job in communicating statistics to the general audience, it is imperative that the Bureau provides them with information that is significant, understandable and relevant,” she said.
The National Population and Housing Census (NPHC) is normally carried out after every ten years. The last Census mapping was undertaken by UBOS in 2012/13 in preparation for the 2014 National Population and Housing Census.
