President Bio Announces Date For Sierra Leone 2025 Census

President Dr. Julius Maada Bio has formally announced that Sierra Leone will conduct a nationwide Population and Housing Census (PHC) from December 2 to 15, 2025. This announcement follows the successful passage of Statutory Instrument No. 8 of 2024, which was laid in Parliament on August 8, 2024, and became effective on August 29, 2024.

In his presidential address, President Bio emphasized that the 2025 Census is aligned with the decennial Census calendar and is crucial for the country’s development planning. He pointed out that the 2025 PHC will provide essential data for implementing Sierra Leone’s 2024–2030 Medium Term National Development Plan and assessing progress towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with a deadline of 2030.

“The data from this decennial Census in 2025 will guide the implementation of various development programmes,” President Bio stated, underscoring the importance of reliable statistics to track national development and identify critical challenges.

The 2025 Census will continue Sierra Leone’s long history of census-taking, dating back to 1802, with modern iterations conducted in 1963, 1974, 1985, 2004, and 2015. Building on lessons from the 2021 Mid-Term Census, the government plans to use advanced technologies such as Computer-Assisted Personal Interviews (CAPI) for data collection, further enhancing accuracy and efficiency.

President Bio assured the nation of the government’s commitment to providing substantial financial and logistical support for the census. He acknowledged the collaborative efforts of international partners, including the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), and the United States Census Bureau through USAID, in ensuring the census is successful.

Statistics Sierra Leone, the government agency responsible for supervising and managing the census, has been preparing for the event, according to the Minister of Planning and Economic Development. The President, acting on this advice, officially set December 1, 2025, as Census Night, with the census itself commencing the following day.

The 2025 Population and Housing Census is expected to provide updated and crucial data to shape Sierra Leone’s developmental policies and assess the impact of ongoing interventions. This large-scale national project will offer a baseline for economic planning, housing needs assessment, and social services provision.

President Bio concluded his address by expressing his gratitude to all involved parties and invoked divine blessings on the Republic of Sierra Leone.

Comment(s)

Disclaimer: Comments expressed here do not reflect the opinions of Sierraloaded or any employee thereof.

| 2024-09-13 13:24:06

Salon sick
| 2024-09-10 18:43:21

This is unnecessary, requiring presidential proclamation to conduct a routine census - the law already provides for a national census every 10 years. Leave that to the competent authority, Statistics SL to plan and do its work. That's what serious countries do.
| 2024-09-10 16:35:33

Sierra Leone really needs a revisit on the constitution. We are still not a serious country. Why a proclamation by the President, laying of instrument in Parliament, to conduct a census? Is it not already clearly stated in the constitution who is in charge and when a census shall be conducted? Statistics Sierra Leone. Serious countries do not require the PM or President to make a proclamation any time a census is to be done. This is one of our problems: requiring the President to meddle into everything.