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This article discusses key elements in developing a census data dissemination strategy and highlights the importance of identifying users, understanding their needs, utilizing appropriate technologies and dissemination media, ensuring quality assurance and confidentiality measures, and allocating budget and human resources.
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"Development of Strategies for Census Data Dissemination". United Nations Regional Seminar on Census Data Dissemination and Spatial Analysis Nairobi, Kenya, 14-17 September, 2010 Eliahu Ben-Moshe
“A census is not complete until the information collected is made available to potential users in a form suited to their needs” (UN Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses, DESA/SD , par. 1.206, pp. 49)
Developing Dissemination Strategy:Key Elements • Users identification • Uses/Needs • Technologies • Dissemination Media • Products & Services • Dissemination Policy • Quality Assurance • Meta-data • Confidentiality/Privacy measures • Budget and Human Resources • Users consultation
Users identification • Central Government • Local Government Authorities • Research Community • Business and Industry Sector • General Public • Communication Media • International and Multinational Organizations • Public or Private Service Providers • Market Researchers
Uses/Needs • for policymaking, planning and administrative purposes • as (an essential) part of the statistical infrastructure • for research purposes • for business, industry and labor • for electoral boundary delimitation • as a sampling frame for surveys • for development of benchmark housing statistics • for the formulation of housing policy and programs • for the assessment of the quality of housing • in relationship with other statistical activities
Technologies • GIS • Internet Dissemination • Data bases
Dissemination Media • Paper publications • Digital Media • Online dissemination
Products & Services • Provisional results • Tabulations • Thematic statistical or analytical reports • Procedural, Evaluation and other reports • Census mapping • Interactive digital outputs • General interest products and special audience reports • Services – Customized products, "on request" services
Tabulations • Basic/essential tabulations • Recommended tabulations • Additional tabulations
What is unique about census products? • Estimates for small areas and small population groups > effective decision making (identified target population); • Infrastructure statistics > effective sampling for surveys (identified strata), without crossing lines vis a vis response burden and budget; • But usually infrequent (once a decade). Census Dissemination Strategy has to address first those needs answered only by census data
Dissemination Policy • Marketing • Pricing • External distributors • Confidentiality and privacy • Accessibility
Quality Assurance attributes • Relevance • Completeness • Accuracy • Comparability • Coherence • Timeliness • Punctuality • Clarity • Accessibility • Metadata
QA process should show • Methodological soundness: adherence to professional methods and (internationally) agreed standards; • Efficiency: degree to which statistics are compiled in such a way that the cost and the respondent burden are minimized relative to output.
QA challenges • Census dissemination can easily be overlooked in the chain of providing a quality outcome for the census as management attention is diverted to the costly and risky enumeration and processing operations. • Dissemination systems and processes need to be available, documented and tested prior to the release of data from the processing phase.
Metadata • Sources of the data • Definitions • Methods • Para-data (collection-process description) • International comparability
Confidentiality/Privacy measures • Direct identification • Indirect identification
Budget and Human Resources • Proper budget allocation since the start of the project • Human resources recruitment and maintenance until the end of the census project
How to Determine Users’ Needs • Mandatory products • Uses in previous census • Uses in relevant surveys and expressed needs • International recommendations • Surveys, discussion groups, and other operations to elicit needs of known users and of potential users before (and after) the census • NSI insights and leading role • Future needs… This is to create a reservoir of needs
Consultation with Users • Three issues to be addressed: • Data to be collected according to accepted needs, while keeping the respondents’ rights in mind; • Data to be released to ensure confidentiality and yet, relevance; • Dissemination tools to ensure accessibility, independence in use, clarity and processing ability.
Consultation with Users Data to be collected Limitations Legal Obligations International Recommendations Consistency with Official Statistics Scope and Costs of Direct Data Collection Privacy & Response Burden Consultation Span Alternatives for Direct Data Collection (administrative sources) Public vs. Private Users Infrastructure vs. Other Statistics Multiple vs. Single Potential Users Many vs. Few Uses Influenced by the reservoir of needs
Consultation with UsersData to be Released Limitations Legal Obligations International Recommendations Confidentiality & Individual Privacy Data Quality Generic vs. Tailor-made Products Consultation Span Aggregates vs. Micro-data Single census vs. Several censuses data (Comparisons over-time, linked records)
Consultation with UsersTools • Dissemination Tools come to serve four main purposes: • Accessibility to all; • Independence in use; • Clarityof the data; • Processingability for further research. -Therefore- • Under the limitations of Budget,Human Resources and Technology, users are to be consulted and demonstrated needs, with regard to dissemination tools, are to be answered.
Developing Dissemination Strategy • Users needs determine the Target • Data (and Metadata), Budget and Human resources – are the Input • Technology and methodology – are enabling factors • Products and services – are the Output
“Tips” based in previous experience • Dissemination strategy needs to be developed during the planning stage of the census • Budget and Human Resources need to be determined (and protected) since the beginning of the census project • The supply of census products and services goes far beyond the first couple of years after the census
“A census is not complete until the information collected is made available to potential users in a form suited to their needs”