Rural locals must be part of census enumerators – Malozo

MUCHINGA Province Minister Malozo Sichone is concerned about the challenges associated with the newly-adopted online recruitment of enumerators for the forthcoming Census of Population and Housing. Mr Sichone said the online centrally recruitment of enumerators will disadvantage many people, because not everyone has access to the internet especially in rural parts of the country. Mr Sichone said this when he addressed civil servants in Chama district. He noted that the recruitment of enumerators will only benefit people from the line of rail leaving out the majority of well qualified candidates in the rural areas. Mr Sichone said there are many well-qualified Grade12 school leavers in rural areas with no access to the internet who have been left out in the recruitment process. He said he will not allow a situation where all the enumerators and supervisors for the national exercise come from outside the districts of Muchinga Province. Mr Sichone said those in charge should revisit and ensure that the recruitment process does not discriminate those based in rural areas who are also qualified. The Zambia Statistics Agency is scheduled to conduct national Census of Population and Housing in August this year which will gobble K758.2 million. Mapping for the same exercise has since commenced. The theme for the 2020 National Census of Population and Housing is “Everyone Counts”. A national Census of Population and Housing is an official enumeration of people and structures by government to establish the number of people living in a country and housing units available. It also involves the gathering of demographic, social and economic information and housing conditions of the people. The last Census of Population and Housing in Zambia was in 2010. The 2010 census was the fifth national Census of Population and Housing since independence in 1964, with previous ones conducted in 1969, 1980, 1990 and 2000. – ZANIS The Sun