Osh, Kyrgyz Republic - UNFPA and the National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic completed a three-day training seminar in February to prepare enumerators for the national population and housing census set to take place between 25 March - 3 April 2022.

UNFPA is training over 28,000 enumerators to collect census data using a mobile app developed by the World Bank and tested during the pilot census in 2019. This is the third census the Kyrgyz Republic has undertaken since independence and the first to be conducted electronically.

"The census provides an instant portrait of society and its results will be key for evidence-based forecasts and policy making," said Azamat Baialinov, Head of UNFPA in the Kyrgyz Republic.

The census will provide data on the social and economic situation, education level of citizens, marriage and family structures and the ethnolinguistic composition of the almost 7 million people who live in the Central Asian country.

"Quality preparation is essential for a successful census operation," said Baktybek Kudaibergenov, Chairperson of the National Statistical Committee. "The better we prepare, the better the data coming out of the census will be."

UNFPA is also supporting preparation for the census with other capacity-building activities, organizational, methodological and technical support and a nationwide information campaign.