ESCWA Publication: E/ESCWA/CL4.SIT/2022/TP.3
Country: Republic of Iraq
Publication Type: Reports & studies
Cluster: Statistics, Information Society and Technology
Focus Area: Statistics
Initiatives: Population & Housing Censuses
SDGs: Agenda 2030
Keywords: Population, Housing censuses, Geographic information systems, Demography, Demographic statistics, Agricultural censuses, Housing censuses
Assessment of GIS for the population and housing census in Iraq
June 2022
Geospatial information methodologies and technologies have been adopted by National Statistical Organizations (NSOs), including in many developing countries, in the recognition that the appropriate use and application of these technologies enhance efficiency in the preparatory, enumeration, processing, and dissemination phases of the population and housing census and, ultimately, its overall quality. Today, virtually every NSO uses GIS to create digital maps, create and maintain databases, disseminate geostatistical products, and provide a wide range of services. Building a statistical-geospatial infrastructure in support of censuses and statistical activities is particularly recognized as an enabler for facilitating data sharing and improving the availability and access of country information in support of evidence-based decision-making and sustainable development.
It is under this mandate that the Central Organization for Statistics and Information Technology (COSIT) in Iraq aims to use innovative geospatial information technologies in support of the upcoming census, and to proceed with their adoption and implementation in accordance with United Nations recommendations, taking into account their specific national circumstances. In this context, ESCWA has commissioned this assessment report which identifies the scope and the gaps of the existing geospatial infrastructure within the Statistical Office in Iraq, with operational guidelines on how to use the geospatial information technologies at every stage of the census, and which identifies the resources and capacities to carry out their implementation and monitoring.
Related content
Statistics
,
Geospatial information methodologies and technologies have been adopted by National Statistical Organizations (NSOs), including in many developing countries, in the recognition that the appropriate use and application of these technologies enhance efficiency in the preparatory, enumeration, processing, and dissemination phases of the population and housing census and, ultimately, its overall quality. Today, virtually every NSO uses GIS to create digital maps, create and maintain databases, disseminate geostatistical products, and provide a wide range of services. Building a statistical-geospatial infrastructure in support of censuses and statistical activities is particularly recognized as an enabler for facilitating data sharing and improving the availability and access of country information in support of evidence-based decision-making and sustainable development.
It is under this mandate that the Central Organization for Statistics and Information Technology (COSIT) in Iraq aims to use innovative geospatial information technologies in support of the upcoming census, and to proceed with their adoption and implementation in accordance with United Nations recommendations, taking into account their specific national circumstances. In this context, ESCWA has commissioned this assessment report which identifies the scope and the gaps of the existing geospatial infrastructure within the Statistical Office in Iraq, with operational guidelines on how to use the geospatial information technologies at every stage of the census, and which identifies the resources and capacities to carry out their implementation and monitoring.
