A census of population, households and dwellings in Croatia, the first-ever digital census, will start on Monday, 13 September, and be implemented in two phases, it was said at a government session on Thursday, with the government calling on citizens to take part in the census.
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The census is the most comprehensive and most complex statistical survey covering three elements - population, households and dwellings, with Croatian Bureau of Statistics director Lidija Brković saying that census data were necessary for the implementation of various economic, social, demographic, development and other policies and research.
The purpose of a census is to determine data on the size and spatial distribution of a population and its basic demographic, educational, migration, economic and other characteristics, as well as the characteristics of households and dwellings.
The reference time of the census will be midnight 31 August 2021, Brković said.
The census refers to Croatian nationals, foreign nationals and persons without citizenship who have permanent residence in Croatia and persons who at the reference time of the census reside in Croatia.
"Individual census data are statistically confidential, they constitute an official secret and are published exclusively as collective data, in line with the Official Statistics Act," she stressed.
The 2021 census is unique in that data will be collected for the first time digitally, in the period from 13 to 26 September, when citizens will be able to self-enumerate, while the second phase, with census-takers collecting data on the ground, will start on 27 September and last until 17 October.
In the first phase, citizens will be able to register themselves and all members of their household via the e-citizens system.
"The self-enumeration rule is 'one credential - one household', which means that if more than one member of a household use the e-citizens system, only one member enters data on other members of the household, the household itself and the dwelling," she said.
She stressed that this type of self-enumeration enabled safe and advanced digital communication with citizens at the time that best suits them.
In the second phase, census-takers will conduct face-to-face interviews with citizens and register, with the help of electronic devices, all census units that have not self-enumerated.
"The situation caused by COVID-19 has resulted in numerous challenges in almost all social and economic areas, including census-taking. The Croatian Bureau of Statistics will take all the necessary measures to successfully conduct the census in line with anti-epidemic rules," said Brković. ■