2021 Census: Govt Statistician calls for cooperation on areas with boundary disputes

Professor Kobina Annim, Government Statistician, has called for cooperation on areas likely to spark boundary issues to ensure a successful Population and Housing Census.

He said the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) had received several letters from Members of Parliament and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies on boundary issues, which had lingered on from the previous census exercises.

He noted that when the issues were not well handled, it could derail the success of Ghana's 2021 Population Census scheduled to take off in June this year.

Prof Annim said this when he paid a courtesy call on Mr Seth Acheampong, Eastern Regional Minister, at the Regional Co-ordinating Council in Koforidua.

He said: "GSS is not responsible for demarcation", and, therefore, appealed to all stakeholders who had boundary issues to cooperate for a successful exercise.

He said failure to enumerate people in such areas would affect the overall objectives and goals of the exercise.

On the preparations made so far, he said everything was on course to conduct a very successful exercise and indicated that key issues such as security, public education on the exercise and logistical provisions were ongoing smoothly.

Prof Annim also indicated that a digital census had been introduced for the 2021 Population and Housing Census and in line with that more than 4,000 customised tablets would be used for the exercise.

He added that even though GSS was leading the exercise, it needed the support of all to leverage on their capacities for better outcomes and expressed the hope that the RCC would live up to that expectation.

Mr Acheampong, Regional Minister, said once the census was in the interest of national development, support from the RCC was without doubt.

He said the Regional Security Council would pay attention to the boundary issues, which might come up to ensure that nobody was left out of the enumeration exercise.

Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, on Friday, March 19, launched the 100 day-count down to the Census night, Sunday, June 27, 2021.

The Census will give Ghana the total number of persons and housing types and their characteristics in every town or village.

The information helps both Central and local governments to plan various social services, such as education, health and sanitation.

The information will also help the private sector, including business, to plan their activities, which would aid national development.

International bodies, including development partners and non-governmental organisations, also utilise population and housing data in their planning for Ghana.