Story by Grace Sibanda
THE country is set to embark on its maiden economic census which will take place in 2025 and will be subsequently conducted in five-year intervals to track economic dynamics for growth purposes.
In her remarks at the launch of the initiative in Bulawayo this Monday, Bulawayo Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Honourable Judith Ncube urged business players to cooperate in providing statistics to ensure proper allocation of resources.
“As we look forward to the country undertaking the economic census, I call upon the business community including micro, small to medium enterprises to cooperate with ZimStat as they will be collecting the data,” said Honourable Ncube.
Speaking on behalf of the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSAT), the acting director general, Mrs Matiwonesa Phiri said the census will take place in three stages from 2025 to 2027.
She said, “The census will be conducted in three stages, with the first being mapping of business enumeration areas, the second being listing of all establishments and the third stage being the enumeration of establishments. The survey of small enterprises will commence in 2025 and 2027 will mark the dissemination of the information.”
The Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Professor Mthuli Ncube reiterated that the economic census will provide valuable insights into the geographical spread of business establishments and economic activities across the country.
“In keeping with the devolution agenda, the 2025 economic census will provide valuable insights into the geographical spread of both the business establishment and economic activities across the country. Statistics produced from the census will also inform on progress made towards regional, continental, and global initiatives,’ said Professor Ncube.
An economic census is similar to a population census, with the difference being bias towards business activities.
