Preparation for 2011 Census picks up steam

Census banner mounted on at The Circus in downtown Basseterre (photo by Erasmus Williams)

BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, MARCH 28TH 2011 – With Census Day fast approaching, over 250 enumerators have been undergoing intensive training to conduct the exercise held every 10 years in St. Kitts and Nevis.

Ms. Beverly Harris, Census Officer said although Census Day is May 15th, field enumerators will from mid-April cover all areas in St. Kitts and in Nevis collecting information from all households regarding migration, housing, crime, demographic characteristics, (age, gender, ethnicity, etc.) disability, birthplace and residence, education and training, technical and vocational training, marital status, fertility and economic activity.

Census Day is May 15th, 2011 and field enumerators have been undergoing intensive training which started last week with supervisors and continuing Monday night at the NEMA Headquarters with the numerators who will be going house to house. A similar training exercise begins in Nevis on Tuesday. Assistance is being given by the United Nations Population Fund (UNPF).

“All localities will be covered and in areas where it may be a challenge to contact some householders, an appeal will be made to those householders to come to the office to be enumerated,” said Ms. Harris.

She stressed that the 2011 Population and Housing Census provides valuable data on the structure, size and general characteristics of the population as well as its housing stock.

” It provides a complete count of every person and all living quarters in the Federation. It is a primary source of official statistics that is used extensively by both the Government and private sector, locally, regionally and internationally,” said Ms. Harris.

“It is a form of stocktaking not only of a country’s human capital but of its building stock,” she said.

Most countries including St. Kitts and Nevis conduct a Census every ten years, as is in keeping with a global initiative endorsed by the United Nations’ Statistics Division (UNSD).

The last Census was taken in 2001 when a total of 46,325 persons were counted in the Federation. Of this number, 35,217 persons resided on St. Kitts while 11,108 persons resided on Nevis.

In the 1991 Census, a total of 40,618 persons with 31,824 on St. Kitts and 8,794 on Nevis.

In the 1980 Census, a total of 43,291 persons were counted with 33,863 on St. Kitts and 9,428 on Nevis.