ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq and the Kurdistan Region on Friday began a two-week pilot population census, in preparation for the long overdue full count set for November.
“The pilot census began this morning in the provinces of Erbil, Sulaimani, and Duhok. In each province, specific villages, streets, and areas have been selected, with about 25 houses to be counted daily,” Karzan Raza, the media director of the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) planning ministry told Rudaw.
Last week the planning ministry carried out a two-day training session for the teams conducting the polls.
Sulaimani governor Haval Abubakir told journalists that the pilot census is set to span 14 days.
Iraq will carry out a census in November. It will be the first general population count conducted since 1997 and the first to include the Kurdistan Region’s provinces since 1987.
The latest census in 1997 counted 19 million Iraqis. A separate count for the Kurdistan Region put the population of the three Kurdish provinces at 2.8 million. The country’s population now is at an estimated 43 million.
The questionnaire will be conducted digitally and the information will be stored in a data center – the first in Iraq. The authorities have said that this will help to realize the results quicker and allow the relevant departments to analyze the data.
According to the Iraqi planning ministry, the questionnaire will include a housing census along with counts of the population, family members, social status, and other information.
Iraq has been discussing carrying out a new census for years, a move that should contribute to the resolution of historic problems like Baathist-era Arabization, the status of disputed Kirkuk, which is claimed by both the federal government and the KRG, and the size of the KRG’s share of federal funds.
A census planned for 2020 was postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
A key obstacle to conducting a census between Baghdad and Erbil has been the ethnicity question. Last month, Iraq said it will carry out the census without surveying its citizens on their ethnicities.
Hemin Baban Rahim contributed to this report
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