On 23 July 2016 – In 2016, I.R. Iran will be conducting “Paperless Population and Housing Census” for the first time.  Upon request of the  Statistical Center of Iran, UNFPA supported the mission of Dr. Hyungseog Kim former census manager of KOSTAT and presently UNFPA Technical Advisor, to I.R. Iran in order for him to share his knowledge and technical expertise on conducting electronic population and housing census.

Dr. Kim facilitated a one-day technical session in which  more than thirty senior experts from the Statistical Center of Iran (SCI), Statistical Research and Training Center (SRTC), and National Organization for Civil Registration (NOCR), benefited from the experiences of other countries using similar methodology particularly the experience of Korean Statistical Office (KOSTAT) on conducting electronic census.

During the opening session,  Dr. Rezaie, head of Statistical Research and Training Center (SRTC),  indicated the importance of using the new technology in upcoming census, and the fact that the Census will be conducted in two phases, internet based (online questionnaire), and data dissemination through handheld electronic device.

During the technical session, Dr. Kim talked about “e-census” looking at different aspects for participants including data gathering methods, designing of the questionnaire, issue of internet access code for households,  techniques for ensuring high participation, and household identification. He stressed that for using such technology, secure and appropriate IT infrastructure is essential.

The workshop followed by a meeting with the key experts responsible for census, discussing technical aspects and practical recommendations of Dr. Kim for effective implementation of Iran’s 2016 population and housing census.