By Onuminya Ochowechi In Sokoto
In preparation for the first fully digital census in 2023, the national population commission (NPC) has commenced training of its functionaries for trial census in Sokoto State.
In a press briefing at the press centre , Sokoto on Thursday the federal Commissioner representing Sokoto State Chiso Abdullahi Dattijo said the trial census was another key preparatory activity for the main census.
He noted that the commission has commenced training of enumerators and local government supervisors to conduct the exercise in all the selected nine local government areas , three each from the three senatorial district of the state.
Dattijo further disclosed that the trial would be conducted in all the 7,718 selected enumeration areas across the country to test run the suitability and readiness for the actual census in 2023.
The commissioner stated that the exercise would avail the commission opportunity to test all aspects of census operations from planning to implementation, logistics , arrangement and management, questionnaire design format, training procedure , field work operations , publicity, payment system , data processing, data tabulation and analysis.
” The trial census which is also known as the ” Census dress rehearsal ” is another key preparatory activity for the census , it is a process in which all census operations are tested in detail and comprehensive manner. This take place as a matter of best practice about a year before the actual census date to assess the scenario that may be presented during the main census .
Fielding question on the security challenges in some part of the state he said NPC will engage those from those areas for the exercise.