PM: Census important foundation for country’s devt planning
PUTRAJAYA: The Population and Housing Census conducted every 10 years gives an accurate picture of the country’s current demographics which will serve as a source of reference and important foundation for the country’s development planning.
Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin when launching the Malaysian Population and Housing Census 2020 (Census 2020) here yesterday said, through the census, the size, distribution, composition and socioeconomic characteristics of the people and housing in Malaysia can be identified.
“Information about education, health and recreational facilities, as well as road network gathered through the census will be used to formulate and implement government policies for development and people’s wellbeing,” he said while urging all Malaysians to give their full cooperation to ensure the success of the census.
He said although the country is still facing difficult times following the Covid-19 outbreak and still being placed under the Recovery Movement Control Order ( RMCO), there will be guidelines or standard operating procedures (SOP) that must be complied with by the National Statistics Department’s staff and those involved in conducting Census 2020.
Muhyiddin said the information provided through the census will shape the lives of future generations, leading the country to greater heights.
“Looking back, the good lives and benefits that we enjoy today are the results of the cooperation and commitment of the people who provided the information needed during the last five censuses,” he said.
The prime minister said the role and responsibility of the government and the people should be to ensure that the country continues to progress in competitive, full of integrity and honourable manners so that the people could enjoy the appropriate standard of living and that focus could be given to the efforts to achieve the status of a fully developed nation faster.
Meanwhile, Muhyiddin said the government is committed to continuing the country’s development efforts through the 12th Malaysia Plan and the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 (WKB2030).
However, he said to implement the development efforts based on the WKB2030, there are current and future planning requirements that demand the government to be more proactive and responsive.
“In order to improve the people’s wellbeing, decisions must be made correctly based on comprehensive facts and evidence,” he said.
Muhyiddin said official statistics are the main thrust to the process of formulating the country’s socio-economic policies and in this regard, the Department of Statistics was entrusted with the responsibility to produce credible and reliable statistics in economics, social, demographic and environmental fields.
He said the National Statistics System is based on the good practice recommended by the United Nations Fundamental Principals of Official Statistics, which was developed to support the production of official statistics.
The prime minister said a robust National Statistics System needed to be developed in an increasingly challenging world where the country’s competitiveness was increasingly depending on the power of data and information to make accurate decisions.
As such, he said strategic investment by stakeholders was needed for infrastructure development and capacity building of the system.
“Indeed, when robust statistics are available, the channelling of resources for planning and development can be done more efficiently and effectively,” he added. — Bernama