“Significant population growth” recorded in census – Ashni Singh confirms

…says preliminary census report for yearend release

Ahead of the preliminary report on the 2022 census, which is expected to be released by this year end, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh, who has ministerial responsibility for the Bureau of Statistics, has confirmed that there has been a significant population growth in Guyana.

During a recent interview with the media, Dr Singh related that, based on the report he has seen, a significant growth in the Guyanese population was recorded during the 2022 census.
Asked to comment on the long delay in releasing the report, the Finance Minister noted that even the Cabinet itself is of the view that the report is overdue.
“I did say that the preliminary results of the census will be available before the end of the year. We remain, as a Government, firmly committed to that objective. I myself, and I know I speak for the rest of the cabinet, am of the view that this exercise really should have been completed already. And I’ve communicated this to the Chief Statistician myself, that we would like to see this completed,” Dr Singh has said.
“And I have said my public commitment (is) that the census results be made available before the end of the year. I have conveyed to the Chief Statistician that I would like that commitment to be met. I know that they are very advanced in their work, and I’m expecting that they will ensure that commitment is met,” Dr. Singh has said.
The Finance Minister has said the normal process is for the preliminary report to be issued, and critical data on the census be issued in summary tables. Thereafter, a detailed report containing in-depth annexes would be issued.
Dr Singh meanwhile noted that a number of reasons were responsible for the delay in the release of the census report. For instance, he said, the Bureau had briefed him that their work had been interrupted on a number of occasions by bad weather, inaccessible communities, and other factors.
“They wanted to allow multiple rounds. They left (messages) in people’s mailbox, etc. and then, having substantially completed the enumeration exercise, they then have to do a data collation and a compilation to prepare the preliminary report, etc.,” he explained.
“They did have a number of homes where they got no responses. They had to do multiple visits, their work was interrupted on a number of occasions by bad weather, inaccessibility etc; there are a variety of reasons,” the Finance Minister added.
Back in October 2023, Chief Statistician Errol La Cruz had said the entity is striving to ensure accuracy, validity and quality in the process and its data. He noted that while the initial phase of enumeration was completed, additional enumeration was being conducted.
La Cruz has said the Bureau strives to achieve 100 per cent coverage in the census, and is reaching out to several agencies to identify individuals or households that have not been counted.
Even up to May of this year, enumerators were still collecting information from households and individuals who were not enumerated.
The National Population and Housing Census is a process wherein all persons in Guyana are counted. The Census, Guyana’s largest data- collection exercise, provides not only an accurate count of the population, but also other critical information on its demographics, including gender, age, structure, educational attainment and fertility. This information is in high demand by a range of persons, including policymakers, the private sector, and students.
Part of a wider initiative across the Caribbean, the census is conducted every 10 years, with Guyana’s last census being conducted in 2012. Guyana’s population count in 2012 stood at 746,955, a decline from the previous census in 2002, which had seen a count of 751,223. However, with the country currently undergoing an unprecedented economic transformation, it is anticipated that the new census would highlight significant shifts in the Guyana population. (G3)