Marcos declares July as national census month

MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos has declared July 2024 as the National Census and Community-based Monitoring System Month as the government prepares to gather data on the country’s population.

Declared under Proclamation 627, signed by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin by the authority of the President last July 9, it noted that the 1996 Executive Order 352 requires a census of population every 10 years and a mid-decade census of population every five years as well as the maintenance and processing of administrative-based records.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), through Board Resolution 6, recommended the conduct of the 2024 census of population and community-based monitoring system from July to September 2024.

According to Proclamation 627, the undertaking will involve the collection, compilation, evaluation, analysis, publication and dissemination of data on population count, demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the population, housing statistics and other relevant data in each barangay, municipality, city, province and region in the country.

“The regular conduct of POPCEN-CBMS (census of population-community based monitoring system) supports the decentralization of functions to local government units and equips government executives, policymakers and planners with current and comprehensive population data to develop informed social and economic development plans, policies and programs,” the proclamation said.

“The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), through the PSA, is hereby directed to lead, coordinate and supervise the observance of the National Census and CBMS Month,” it added.

The proclamation directed all government entities and encouraged local governments, non-government organizations, professional associations and the private sector to support and assist the NEDA and the PSA in the observance of the census month. It also encouraged Philippine residents to cooperate with the PSA and its census enumerators by providing truthful and complete information in response to census questions.

The nationwide population census will be conducted from July 15 to Sept. 15.  At least 70,000 enumerators will visit about 27 million households nationwide for the population census.

Refusal to participate in the data collection is punishable under Republic Act 10625 or the Philippine Statistical Act of 2013. Individuals who refuse to cooperate in the data gathering effort may be slapped with one-year imprisonment and a P100,000 fine.