By John Sheka Tarawalie
Stats Sierra Leone which is the body responsible to conduct census in Sierra Leone on Monday 27th September 2021 started its 2021 mid-term Population and Housing Census pilot training workshop for Enumerators at Hotel 5-10 in Freetown.
In her welcome statement, the M and E Manager at Stats-SL Madam Yeabu Tholley said the Pilot Census is a dress rehearsal for the main census and all systems and processes that will be used in the main census will be tested. Noting that it will assist Statistic Sierra Leone to allocate the required resources and refine methodologies to ensure that the 2021 Mid-Term Population and Housing Census is delivered efficiently and effectively. She added that the Trainees are from the 16 districts in Sierra Leone including Western Rural and Urban. Adding that over the next 13 days, the Field Officers will be trained comprehensively on all aspects of the census. And that the training will include the concepts and definitions of the census as well as how to carry out the fieldwork and would also cover the duties of the field officer before, during and after enumeration.
Madam Tholley continued that, the training will adopt a participant-centred approach which involves lectures, face to face interactions, mock interviews, assessments, field practice, small group discussion to ensure that concepts, definitions and procedures for collecting data are well understood. Adding that at the end of the training, each participant is expected will be able to interpret and use an EA Map, carry out a listing of structures and complete a listing form, know how to enumerate a household population, institutional population and gloating population using the CAPI system. She added that Field Officers will be selected for fieldwork based on Performance in assessment, the contribution made during training sessions, performance during field practice, fluency in one or more local languages spoken in the district, general appearance, attitude, behavior and punctuality and attendance. Noting that the census is a priority development activity and therefore requires the needed support of all and sundry. Adding that the quality of the data the field officers will collect after the training will help to inform decisions that will affect hundreds of thousands of Sierra Leoneans for years to come.
In his keynote address and formal opening of the training, the Chairman Stats Council Mr Moses Williams told trainees to be committed in the process of the training and that he is so paramount about the commitment of the trainees. Noting that it is not about the money but for the quality work for the country. He added that the purpose of the census is to know the number of people living in Sierra Leone. He admonished that they will not encourage any excuse from the enumerators, nothing people are in the habit of holding to jobs at the same time. Adding that they want people who will give them their full time. He revealed that this is the first pilot that is going digital, noting that this time everything is digitalized.
