Endeavor to be counted, says President Museveni as he launches the National Population and Housing Census 2024
President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has December 12,2023 launched the National Population and Housing Census (NPHC) 2024 at Kololo Independence Grounds.
After every 10 years, Uganda holds a national census and the last one was carried out in 2014. The census figures play a critical role in guiding planning, policy formulation, programme implementation as well as monitoring development progress in line with the national goals and objectives.
The census exercise that will take place on the night of 9th May, 2024, will use digital technology to collect, process and disseminate census results. The digital census will enable the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) to produce accurate and timely demographic, social and economic statistics.
According to UBOS, the country’s current population is estimated at 45.5 million, with a growth rate of 30.4 percent.
During the ceremony, President Museveni thanked the management and staff of UBOS for the good work they have done in ensuring that census activities are always a success in Uganda.
“The aim of the counting seems to be how many people? Where are they? How are they? What do they own? And where are the services? These are the questions which will be answered,” he said.
President Museveni also made it clear that the nationwide exercise will begin on the night of May 9, 2024, and the next day, May 10th, 2024, will be observed as a public holiday to enable a big number of Ugandans to be counted.
“So, the public holiday will be the next day, May 10. I urge all Ugandans to stay in their homes and be counted,” H.E Museveni stressed. President Museveni expounded that the census is crucial since it enables the government to plan better for its people.
“These questions are very crucial so that the government can plan for you better because you cannot plan properly for people you dont know. Let us get the census so that it gives us the answers to all these questions, then we shall be able to know how to help them (Ugandans) better. The purpose of the counting is mainly planning,” he asserted.
The President was also happy to note that he was pleased with the growing population of Uganda and Africa as a whole.
“Africa used to be under populated. Remember that Africa is about 12 times the size of India; you can fit India in Africa 12 times. India is 1 million square miles while Africa is 12 million square miles. However, until recently, India had a bigger population than Africa but now Africa has taken over the population of India and by 2025, the population of Africa is estimated to be 2.5 billion, it will be the biggest in the world,” President Museveni revealed.
“This means that all this time, for 4 and a half million years, Africa has been under populated. Why? Because Africa is good for the man and his enemies like mosquitoes, Tsetse flies, microbes, Ebola, what a view! All of them are here. So, to see that the population is now growing is a mark of success of the post-Independence governments of Africa. Here in Uganda, it’s a dramatic example because the population was only 14 million in 1986 but it is now estimated to be 46 million; it has grown up to almost 4 times. Why? People are not dying as they used to die and the ones who live, live longer,” he added.
The Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Hon. Matia Kasaija expressed gratitude towards the development partners like the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) and the World Bank that have supported the government of Uganda in implementing the statistical activities and are also involved in the 2024 census.
“I commend UBOS management and staff for they have always lived up to our expectations. Congratulations, UBOS!” Hon. Kasaija said.
The Minister of ICT and National Guidance, Dr. Chris Baryomunsi thanked President Museveni for the support he has provided to enable the country to carry out the National Population and Housing Census 2024.
“Your Excellency, a census is a very important undertaking and it’s an age-old event. For the Christians if you read the Bible, there are very many incidents which are quoted in the Bible where censuses were carried out including the time when Jesus was born. So, we want to assure Ugandans that there's nothing bad about the census; If you are counted it means now the government will know that you are there, it will plan for you, and you will get better services. Therefore, we want to call upon Ugandans to participate in this exercise,” Dr. Baryomunsi urged.
