Regional Training Workshop on the Implementation of the International Recommendations for the 2030 Round of Population and Housing Censuses in Asia

Population and housing censuses are the most comprehensive and authoritative data sources on the size and characteristics of a country’s population. They form a cornerstone of national statistical systems, generating essential social, economic, and demographic data. These data provide the baseline evidence required for planning, policy development, implementation, and monitoring across geographical levels, sectors, as well as for research and analysis. Censuses also underpin many Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) indicators, enabling countries to track progress toward national and global development targets.  

Since its first publication in 1958, the Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses have been a pillar of the decennial World Programmes on population and housing censuses, setting out the standards, concepts, and methods that national statistics offices or other national institutions in charge of population censuses should follow to plan, organize, conduct, and use population and housing censuses. In March 2025, the United Nations Statistical Commission endorsed the 4th revision of these Principles and Recommendations.  As with previous versions, the revised guidance covers key census elements (characteristics, methodology, and content) and addresses several key emerging issues, such as the transition to alternative approaches from traditional methods, including the use of administrative data and other data sources, the integration of geospatial information with census data, emergency preparedness and contingency planning, and quality assurance.