KATIMA MULILO – Despite several reports across the country over the past two weeks of individuals refusing to be counted during the ongoing 2023 Population and Housing Census, the Zambezi region did not record any cases of people refusing to be counted.
Zambezi regional census public relations officer Damien Siambango said this during an interview on Friday.
He said residents have been cooperating with enumerators and this has resulted in a smooth exercise being carried out.
“They were just a few isolated cases but not major ones to warrant the involvement of the police. In most instances, it was due to a lack of information. But when the importance of the census was explained to them, people allowed the enumerators to proceed. However, there were just a few people who were not willing to cooperate, but all cases were resolved,” said Siambango.
Nevertheless, the region faced other challenges including accessibility, particularly in Kabbe South constituency.
“There are some areas which you cannot reach with a vehicle or a boat. You have to stop somewhere, and the enumerators have to walk a few kilometres to reach the community. In one incident, they had to wait for a boat, but I am confident by the end of the weekend everyone in Kabbe South will have been covered,” he said.
Siambango also touched on the issue of foreigners particularly those from Zambia. He said they tend to hide when they see the numerators, thinking they are police officers. Despite this, they were eventually counted when the numerators introduced themselves.
Regarding Friday being the deadline for the counting, Siambango said he was confident that the deadline would be met.
“In some areas, there was a delay in meeting the deadline (Friday), because people were not present at their homes. Therefore, enumerators will still have to make some callbacks, but all the areas in the region have been covered,” stressed Siambango.
The 2023 Population and Housing Census started on 18 September and was to run until 03 November. The country usually conducts the census after 10 years; however, this exercise was postponed in 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and financial constraints.
*Aron Mushaukwa is an information officer for the MICT in Zambezi region.