Opinions & Interviews

Belarusian government to rely on census data to make economic decisions

MINSK, 10 September (BelTA) – The data the population census will provide will become the foundation for making decisions on economic and social affairs. Prime Minister of Belarus Sergei Rumas made the relevant statement during the session of the Council of Ministers’ Presidium on 10 September, BelTA has learned.

The head of government reminded that an event of importance for every citizen and the society as a whole – a population census – will take place in Belarus on 4-30 October. “The information the census will provide will become the foundation for making decisions on economic and social affairs. The central government and municipal government agencies will use the data to make decisions on financing the social sphere, enhancing the defensive capability, and making state investments,” Sergei Rumas stressed. This is why quality work during the census will determine the correctness and authenticity of the results, which in turn will heavily influence plans concerning the Belarusian economy for the next ten years.

It was noted that preparations for the population census in Belarus had been in progress for the last two years. A temporary national commission in charge of facilitating the census worked hard under the supervision of First Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus Aleksandr Turchin. This is why today’s session of the Presidium is in essence an opportunity to compare notes, Sergei Rumas noted. During the session the head of government requested an evaluation of the readiness of government agencies (primarily in the regions) to carry out the population census. Problems that need solving were also mentioned.

In particular, an important peculiarity of the forthcoming census is the ability of citizens to fill in the data on their own via the Internet. It is supposed to greatly lessen the workload of census takers while increasing the number of people polled. However, the prime minister believes citizens may run into a number of organizational and technical difficulties in the course of filling in the population census forms.

According to the head of government, the matter of security of census takers also deserves attention.

The previous population census in the Republic of Belarus took place ten years ago. Unlike the previous one this year’s event will allow citizens to fill in census forms via the Internet at a time of their convenience. Citizens will also be able to go to stationary census stations or wait for a census taker to visit their home.

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