Kirehe-A training programme for district enumerators in the forthcoming population census was launched in all districts yesterday.According to authorities, the launch marked a series of training workshops that will be conducted in preparation for the forthcoming national census, trainings that will last for the next two weeks.Rwanda is set for the 2012 population census scheduled to start on Census Day – 15 August 2012.Primary teachers from various schools form the majority of trainees that will work as enumerators in the impending Population and Housing Census in the country.Actual house counting will be conducted and then enumerators will again go door to door counting actual heads or persons in a house.Speaking to the press at a training workshop at Rusumo High School, where about 600 teachers begun training on how to conduct the census yesterday, Bazil Ntamahoro, the coordinator of National Institute of Statistics stressed the importance of the training.He said that the trainees would obtain adequate skills and knowledge at the end of the exercise.“One of the objectives of the training is to prepare the officials to take up strategic roles in the districts. We are preparing the enumerators to work as a team in order to accomplish the exercise flawlessly,” he said.“The census will avail unique data source that provides benchmark information for effective planning and good governance at all levels,” he said.In Kirehe district, Mayor Protais Murayire urged residents to be ready to co-operate with census officials as they do their job.“As districts, we are eager to know the population size and its distribution as well as other demographic, economic and social indicators as these will assist us in our projects aimed at improving the livelihoods of our people,” he said.At least 16,500 enumerators, including one for every village (umudugudu), will visit every household in Rwanda.
