Yesterday marked the start of the nation’s fourth economic census, which aims to provide a detailed understanding of the structural changes in the economy over time.
Using a totally computerised technology, the census will be carried out nationally through December 26. “Orthonoitik Shumarite Tottho Din, Notun Bangladesh Binirmane Ongsho Nin” is the catchphrase for the 2024 Economic Census.
A vibrant rally was staged today on the grounds of BBS Bhaban in the Agargaon neighbourhood of the capital to commemorate the start of the Economic Census operations.
Md. Mahbub Hossain, the secretary of the Statistics and Informatics Division, formally opened the rally and the enumeration activities.
Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) Director General (DG) Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, Economic Census Project Director and Additional Secretary SM Shakil Akhter, Economic Census Deputy Project Director Mizanur Rahman, and other officials and employees of the BBS and other agencies took part in the rally.
The Economic Census’s primary goals are to assess the facilities available in industries and businesses, classify industries and businesses based on capital investment and workforce structure, determine the structure of non-farm economic activities, provide institutional data, provide basic information about organisations involved in economic activities categorised by type, estimate the workforce involved in economic activities and comprehend their classifications, and provide updated data to policymakers, planners, researchers, and other stakeholders for industrial development.
Some new components of this year’s census include capturing information about digital or e-commerce enterprises and foreign nationals employed in Bangladesh.
All economic units in the country will be covered. Through some 70 questions, the census will address social and environmental aspects, identify challenges, and evaluate ICT integration in production processes. It will also analyse institutions’ income, expenditure, and profitability.
For the census, the country has been divided into 13 divisions, which include 130 districts, 520 upazilas, 2,600 zones, 19,000 supervisory areas, and 95,000 enumeration areas.
The budget of the three-year Economic Census project is Taka 579 crore.
As the national statistical agency, the BBS conducts population, agricultural, and economic censuses.
The country’s first Economic Census took place in 1986, followed by the second one held in 2001 and in 2003 in phases. The third Economic Census was conducted in 2013.
