Impact of COVID-19 on Conducting Population and Housing Censuses
This presentation discusses the challenges faced by the Statistics Division in conducting censuses during the COVID-19 pandemic, including operational impacts, measures taken, and data quality concerns. It also provides an overview of the COVID-19 situation in the country and the steps taken to address the crisis.
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Presentation Transcript
Impact of COVID-19 on Conducting Population and Housing Censuses and Addressing Data Quality Concerns Third United Nations Third United Nations Expert Group Meeting Expert Group Meeting 12 12 December December 2022 2022 Presented by Statchel Edwards Statistics Division, Ministry of Finance and Corporate Governance
Contents Overview of the COVID-19 situation in the country Impact on the operations on the Statistics Division Overview of activities and steps taken Challenges Priorities
170 sq mi Barbuda 100,772 Antigua Tourism + Services OECS + CARICOM Small Island Developing State in the Eastern Caribbean Small Island Developing State in the Eastern Caribbean Main Industries Main Industries Tourism and Services Tourism and Services Member of both the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and Member of both the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) the Caribbean Community (CARICOM)
Overview of the COVID-19 situation Interntional borders reopened for commercial travel, relaxation of some protocols Increase restrictions due to increase number of cases ending Oct 2021 End of state of emergency, vaccine mandate removed and curfews lifted State of Emergency 28 Mar 2020 Vaccines become available to the public Mar 2020 Apr 2020 Jun 2020 Sep 2020 Feb 2021 Mar 2021 Aug 2021 Oct 2021 Dec 2021 Lockdown of all non- essential businesses, curfews Temporary resumption of normal working hours following guidelines Increase restrictions due to increase cases ending Apr 2021 Mandatory vaccination policy for public sector workers
Impact on the operations of the Statistics Division Office physically closed until May 2020 Different mechanisms were implemented by the gov't including shift systems, telework Information technology infrastructure does not support telework Suspension of all household surveys and face to face data collection activities Limited experience in telephone surveys and other data collection methods Lack of availability or delays in the submission of administrative data
Impact on the operations of the Statistics Division Census 2021 Census 2021 Surveys suspended Surveys suspended Preparatory activities were suspended originally scheduled for May 2021 2020 and 2021 LFS cancelled Tourism exit survey (VMESS) suspended in Feb 2020 Resources had to be redirected Freeze on new employment Household Budget Survey and Survey of Living Conditions postponed Health concerns due to the pandemic Low response rate for businesses surveys Advised by the health authorities and relevant agencies to postpone the Census
Impact on the preparation for the Census Activities undertaken Activities undertaken Revised budget to include COVID-19 challenges Key outstanding activities Key outstanding activities Establishment of Census Office Enhance overall census communications programme Revision of data collection period originally it was six weeks Establishment of national committees Incorporate a project management approach to the conduct of the Census Release of necessary funds to undertake preparatory activities Transition from PAPI to CAPI Accessing technical assistance for processing, analysis and dissemination Developed the questionnaire Exploration of mix mode approach
Other projects, workshops and activities Capacity building in data analysis Training in the conduct of telephone surveys and use of computer assisted telephone interviewing Census planning and management Communication and advocacy in collaboration with OECS Commission
Delivery of technical assistance using virtual method impacted some projects and activities Limited technical staff and financial resources to undertake activities; Small size of our NSOs; IT infrastructure and limited capability for key operations to performed remotely Mode of Support Mode of Support Resources Resources Infrastructure Infrastructure Implementation of the revised statistics act to strengthen the Division's ability to compile official statistics Low response rates to surveys; access to administrative data; data gaps (health, education, crime, vital & economic) Limited capacity in GIS, outdated maps and dependence on GIS stakeholders for support Mandate Mandate Access to Data Access to Data GIS Needs GIS Needs Challenges Challenges
Issues that are currently being assessed for Census Issues Issues High attrition rate and testing strategies in household surveys Documentation and communication given the impact of the pandemic on the Census General Election scheduled for 2023 Timeliness of the release of Census results Technical Assistance (TA) for GIS, analysis and dissemination, processing, Post enumeration survey Consideration to conduct a post enumeration survey
Priorities Establish the Census Office and committees to strengthen management and governance Update census maps and GIS infrastructure Accessing the necessary funds and resources Revise our recruitment and training plans to address high attrition rate, low response rates Improve communication strategy and expand the scope of piloting and testing, post census
End of Presentation End of Presentation Thank Thank You You
