With the impending census report due for release on Tuesday 31st August, I have been forced to eat humble pie, let me explain. I watched a documentary this afternoon on Citizen TV showing the preparation and execution of the census 2009 and I was impressed. Under the leadership of the Kenya Bureau of Statistics and conducted in a 3 stage process, It was professionally conducted and highly automated in most aspects. The processes were as follows:- - Pre-Enumeration: This involved taking of Ariel mapping to identify locations of dense population, clusters of households such as slums and villages etc. This was carried out on the entire country and was used to produce a Cartographic map that was advised the division and sub-division for enumerators to visit. In addition they also conducted a mock census 1 year before the kick-off to identify potential challenges. - Enumeration: The actual census and 'counting' as we know it. However the results were being done manually on paper. - Post-Enumeration: Involved manual verification of the data sheets and grouping for machines to scan. I was pleasantly surprised at how fast the scanning speed and the accuracy of the OCR. Further QA was done to ensure accuracy. I hand it to the Ministry of planning and the Bureau of statistics, a job well done. I think this is the most accurate census we have ever undertaken as a country and over 12.9 million household having been enumerated. I am sure that digitizing the enumeration process would have reduced the post-enumeration period (1 year) and saved on the Kshs. 8.4 Billion bill that we the taxpayers have to foot but let give credit where it's due. This was a job well done. The main challenge though is what do we do with this information? The bureau said they are willing to consider proposals by special interest groups on coming up with specific research projects around the census. No doubt mobile companies will be first, where do we go from here? Much Respect Ministry of Planning Kiania D -- [Asentric Consulting Ltd] If a man has in himself the soul of a slave will he not become one no matter what his birth .... -Richest Man in Babylon