Pakistan’s first-ever digital census will now go live one month later than originally planned, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), which cited “unavoidable circumstances” and “ground realities.”
The bureau announced that the seventh population and housing census, originally scheduled to start on February 1, will start on March 1 and last for one month.
The project’s funding status will also impact whether this deadline can be met. However, 22 billion rupees have been set aside for this endeavor.
The previous administration approved the digital census in October 2021 and set the launch date for the same month in 2022, which was later postponed to February 2023. The PBS must submit the information by April 30.
The decision to postpone the field operation was made at the census monitoring committee meeting on January 17, according to a statement made public by PBS on Tuesday. The Director General of Military Operations and all members of pertinent departments were present, and Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal served as the meeting’s chair.
Background conversations and interviews with pertinent stakeholders led to the conclusion that the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) had acquired and set up the 126,000 tablets needed for the exercise. The tablets have been distributed to as many as 121,000 people.
In the coming weeks, the data enumeration portal will also be ready. People can submit their information online. Work on the hardware and software has been finished before the field operation.
The master trainer and trainer training program came to an end last month. Enumerator training took place between January 7 and 21.
Both procedural and political factors contributed to the delays. In both instances, the incumbent government benefits because a postponed census gives it until August to finish the remaining portion of its term.
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