Census to be carried out in November

A head count of the populations will take place in November when the National Statistics Office undertakes a census to determine the social and economic conditions of families.

The census will be carried out between November 7 and December 4 when NSO officials will visit all households to collect questionnaires that will be mailed beforehand.

NSO director Michael Pace Ross said the census night would be November 20, in line with the date chosen by the EU. Census night represents the cut-off date for all data collated in the census.

Participation in the census is obligatory and the questionnaires should be filled in by a mature person within the household. Parents will need to fill in the details for each of their children, including newborn babies. Questions are on a range of subjects, including age, sex, education, employment and household facilities.

The census is an official measure of the number and characteristics of people living in Malta and Gozo on census night. It will also provide a count of private dwellings. The last census was held in 2005.

Finance Minister Tonio Fenech said a budget of €2 million was allocated for the census.

“Although participation in the census is compulsory I appeal for people to cooperate because it will help us to have the data at hand to be able to plan and direct the country’s resources where needed,” he said.

The NSO will be taking on an additional temporary workforce of 1,000 from the civil service to carry out the household visits.