Demographic and Social Statistics

The third Expert Group Meeting aims to continue monitoring the challenges in conducting population and housing censuses during the pandemic. In addition, on day two, the meeting will cover data quality issues that may have arisen due to conducting the census during a pandemic and potential methods to address data quality concerns. Day three of the meeting will provide an opportunity to take a broader approach and discuss lessons learned from conducting censuses during times of crisis and provide recommendations for improving the resilience of future censuses conducted. It is likely that future census operations will have to contend increasing uncertainty due to natural disasters, health emergencies, political instability, or other unforeseen disruptive events. None of these events can be predicted in advance, but contingency planning for the unexpected will be a vital component of delivering a successful census going forward into the 2030 round.

---

The Second United Nations Expert Group Meeting on the Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Conducting Population and Housing Censuses and on Census Data Quality Concerns is organized by the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) with the aim of continuing the monitoring of challenges in conducting population and housing censuses during the Covid-19 pandemic. The meeting will provide an opportunity to discuss alternative solutions in designing census operations conducted during the pandemic as well as address data quality and comparability issues resulting from pandemic protocols and recent changes in the design of census operations.

The meeting will address the following four main topics:

i) potential adjustments in census questionnaires to improve the relevance and quality of census data;
ii) innovative approaches in designing census operations for reducing the adverse impact of the pandemic;
iii) assessment of the quality of population and housing censuses concerning the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on process quality and output quality; and,
iv) effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on data analysis and comparability overtime.

The meeting will bring together census experts from NSOs, census agencies, international and regional organizations to explore challenges, good practices and lessons learned in conducting censuses during the Covid-19 pandemic.

---

The United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) organized the United Nations Expert Group Meeting on the Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Conducting Population and Housing Censuses and on Census Data Quality Concerns, took place online from 9 to 12 February 2021. The Expert Group Meeting had extensive discussions on major changes in the design of census activities in response to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and challenges in producing timely, accurate and reliable small area statistics during the pandemic. The meeting also addressed data quality issues caused by the pandemic protocols and recent changes in the design of census operation and discussed potential challenges in comparing the results of censuses conducted during the pandemic with the results of previous censuses.

---

The webinars on the impact of COVID-19 on civil registration and vital statistics are organized to address:

(a) international standards for civil registration and statistics vital and its implementation in countries;

(b) the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on operations and maintenance of civil registration and production of vital statistics;

(c) the short-term and long-term consequences in the recording of vital events due to the pandemic, and

(d) ensuring universal civil registration of all events beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

---

These webinars are organized by DESA/SD, on behalf of the UN Legal Identity Agenda Task Force, in collaboration with the Global CRVS Group, the Organization of American States and UNECLAC, will target national statisticial officers and civil registrars in Latin America and address (a) international standards for civil registration and vital statistics and their implementation in countries/areas; (b) impact on the operations and maintenance of civil registration and production of vital statistics in the time of COVID-19 pandemic; (c) short- and long-term consequences on registration of vital events due to the pandemic, and (d) beyond COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring universal civil registration of all vital events and production of comprehensive, reliable and regular vital statistics.

---

Webinar series Date: 16,18,23,25,30 June, 2020; Time: 7am -8am(EDT)

Webinar No. 1 (Anglophone 16 June, Francophone 18 June)
International standards, methodological framework for civil registration and vital statistics and the UN Legal Identity Agenda

Webinar No. 2 (Anglophone 23 June, Francophone 25 June)
Introducing UN LIA survey on the COVID-19 impact on civil registration operations, sharing country experiences on the impact of COVID 19 on CRVS system and planning for the future-Reports from Countries

Webinar No. 3 (30 June)
Experience sharing from other region: New Zealand and Malaysia CRVS Business Continuity Strategies During the COVID-19 Crisis

---

Webinars on COVID-19 impact on civil registration and vital statistics are organized in order to address (a) international standards for civil registration and vital statistics and their implementation in countries/areas; (b) impact on the operations and maintenance of civil registration and production of vital statistics in the time of COVID-19 pandemic; (c) short- and long-term consequences on registration of vital events due to the pandemic, and (d) beyond COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring universal civil registration of all vital events and production of comprehensive, reliable and regular vital statistics. The format of the set of webinars: three 40-minute sessions, spread over a week, with participation of civil registrars and statisticians from ten countries/areas, for a total of twenty participants at sub-regional level. Sessions consist of initial presentation, not extending beyond twenty minutes, followed by discussion and question and answer time.

---