Affiliations: Southampton Statistical Sciences Research Institute,
University of Southampton, Southampton, UK | Statistical Division, United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe, Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland
Note: [] Corresponding author: Bernard Baffour, Southampton Statistical
Sciences Research Institute (S3RI), University of Southampton, Southampton,
SO17 1SJ, UK. E-mail: [email protected]
Abstract: The primary purpose of a census is to provide accurate estimates of
a country's population. These underpin a myriad of key planning decisions in
between consecutive censuses at both the local and national level. In addition,
reliable census data is needed at an international level. For example, the UN
requires member states to take at least a census every ten years and EU member
states have a statutory requirement to provide comprehensive population and
housing data at regular defined periods. As such censuses have a pivotal role
to play within official statistics. There are, however, different modes in
which a country can conduct a census. Furthermore, despite all efforts, it is
inevitable that the census cannot be perfect. Therefore, there is the need to
measure the quality of the data produced in a census. The measurement of
quality within a census is not an easy undertaking, mainly because there is
currently no standard method of quality assessment that applies to all census
methodologies. Thus this paper aims to bridge this gap, by examining quality
assessment with regards to population censuses. It defines census quality, and
then discusses the assessment of quality for different types of censuses.
