Abstract
In most countries, a population and housing census is the principal source of data on the number, distribution and characteristics of a population. They further provide information on the underlying phenomena of social and economic characteristics of the population within a country and may represent the primary data source for identifying certain social, demographic and economic exclusions and constraints for small geographical areas or sub-populations. Ideally every ten years, countries conduct a population and housing census - a complex exercise for every nation, that may require taking decisions on enumeration methods, emerging information technology, publicity, privacy and confidentiality, quality control, data collection, processing, analysis, imputation, data dissemination, archiving, evaluations of coverage and quality, etc. This article identifies the main characteristics of censuses and the challenges and successes faced by the countries under the 2010 World Program of Population and Housing Censuses of the United Nations (spanning the years 2005 to 2014) and highlights trends and considerations as planning has started for the 2020 World Program on Population and Housing Censuses; covering the years 2015 to 2024.