URUGUAY: Continuing Coverage on UNFPA’s Support to Census 2011
Several media outlets reported on 11 - 15 October that UNFPA is supporting Census 2011 and technically backs the National Institute of Statics (INE) in its implementation. Data gathering, which started on 1 September, is planned to be finalized at the end of October. Date has been collected from around 70% of the Uruguayan population but some media outlets have questioned the pertinence of some questions, the privacy of information and its extension for additional weeks. For instance, Búsqueda, a weekly, analyzes the pros and cons of the new census modality (“de jure census”) versus the previous “de facto census” (one-day Census). A “de jure census” overall guarantees a better quality of data and faster processing of information at a lower cost, according to INE and UNFPA. INE also highlighted that all the information is protected by law and, therefore, full privacy is guaranteed. Brecha, also a weekly, stressed that the Census, according to UNFPA, should be considered a public good and explained why some of the questions are useful for statistics purposes. Magdalena Furtado, UNFPA national programme officer, explained in a interview for Poder Pensar (Canal 20), how UNFPA has supported INE. Read more in Spanish: Búsqueda, Brecha, Canal 20 – Poder Pensar, Presidencia, Info Maldonado