This archive report was first published on 9 July 2019.
Kenya is set to conduct its 8th national census, a paperless exercise that will be undertaken from August 24 to 25. The census, which will be Kenya's first under the constitution (2010), will focus on eight key areas, including population characteristics, disability, education, and housing conditions.
The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) has announced that the census will be conducted using mobile technology, with devices distributed to all 47 counties starting from July 12. The devices, which will be assembled by Moi University and the Jomo Kenya University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) at a cost of Sh15,000 each, will be used to capture real-time data that will be sent to the central server.
KNBS Director General Zachary Mwangi said that the paperless exercise will accelerate the enumeration process, adding that the computer program to be used has already been designed, developed, and tested. The exercise will be carried out in three phases: pre-enumeration, enumeration, and post-enumeration.
Over 2,700 ICT supervisors, 27,000 content supervisors, and 135,000 enumerators will be recruited to conduct the process, with training scheduled to begin on July 15, 2019, and completed by August 21, 2019. The census will also capture agricultural activities, a component that was not captured in the 2009 census.
