The traditional census: challenges, problems and solutions

1. The traditional census: challenges, problems and solutions THE 2014 MOLDOVAN CENSUS Lucia SPOIALĂ Director General NBS Moldova

2. International overview In June 2006, the Conference of European Statisticians (CES), at its 54th plenary session, adopted recommendations for population and housing censuses of the 2010 round, which were developed by UNECE in cooperation with Eurostat in 2004-2006. Both the CES recommendations and other international are designed to: • assist countries in planning and implementing their census; • select methods or technologies that comply with national conditions; • ensure comparability of data at the regional level by selecting a set of census indicators and harmonization of definitions and classifications.

3. National overview In this regard, the decision of the Government to conduct population and housing census in 2014, which is the last year for the 2010 round, expresses the awareness of the need for this major event. For conducting the PHC in Moldova the legal frameworks were created, namely the Law No. 90 of 26.04.2012 About 2014 Population and Housing Census in the Republic of Moldova and the Government Decision No. 967 of 21.12.2012, establishing that the Population and Housing Census is planned for 1 to 14 April 2014. National Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Moldova, as an organ of the central government and institution authorized in this area has been appointed as responsible for the implementation of the whole census process.

4. General description • Population and housing census is aimed at the collection and production of ample information about the number and territorial distribution of population, demographic and socio-economic structure, the structure of households and families, housing and living conditions of the population. • Census observation units will be: a person, a household, family, housing and building. It should be noted that housing census will be conducted for the first time in Moldova.

5. General description A challenge of 2014 Census is the collection of information on housing stock, so that together with data about population the data about housing stock will be obtained together with their characteristics, which will present information about living conditions of population. The article 3 of Law No. 90 states that “At Census registers information on housing of any type of buildings, no matter their property form of the Republic of Moldova territory".

6. Challenges, problems and solutions Another innovation of the PHC 2014 is the Sector digitization. Thus, for the phase of the listing of buildings and their residences, the enumerators will update the maps in place. Later, this information will be updated in electronic format centrally by the GIS specialists of NBS. All information will be digitized and sectorized. A new characteristic that was introduced in the 2014 PHC, in the Census questionnaire, refers to the difficulties in carrying out daily basic activities recommended by the Washington Group on Disability Statistics. In pilot census conducted in April, people responded with some reluctance to these indicators, especially in urban areas. We will try through instructions compiled for the enumerators to describe the way how to convince the person to answer to this question.

7. Challenges, problems and solutions A problem in traditional census is interviewing people from religious groups and ethnic minorities (Roms / Gypsies) who often refuse to participate in the census. A solution that I proposed to the 2014 Census is to employing temporary census staff from such groups. The refusal to provide information to enumerators is a problem in the traditional census. For this purpose we are planning to open stationary population census sections. So, the person who does not want to open the door to enumerator will have an opportunity go to the premises of such section and be reviewed on the basis of census questionnaires.