Census budget 'slashed' by 54pc

HOGSBACK -- The government has slashed the proposed three-year budget for the 2001 population census from R520 million to R240 million -- a drop of about 54 percent.

This was announced by the Director of Statistics South Africa, Dr Mark Orkin, at a national seminar of demographers here at the weekend.

The seminar was hosted by Rhodes University's population research unit.

The head of the unit, Dr Robert Shell, said he was "dismayed StatsSA may not be able to deliver a complete census in 2001".

The United Nations had agreed to support a simultaneous census throughout southern Africa in 2001.

"This would give us our first real opportunity to understand the movement of migrants in the region," Shell said. "But it won't happen if South Africa doesn't take part."

In a press statement afterwards, the Demographic Association of Southern Africa called on the government "to review its budgetary policy to enable StatsSA to continue services such as the October Household Survey and to plan a complete census in 2001".

Orkin said: "StatsSA cannot deliver a complete census with R240m."

Instead, StatsSA was investigating running a "sample census" in 2001.

Shell said the census was an "important service that affected every every government department and every citizen in South Africa".

He said it held a "numerical mirror" to South Africa and was the country's information base. -- ECN