Senior Reporter
The ongoing National Population and Housing Census (NPHC) in Kabale District has encountered a significant hurdle due to delays in the delivery of essential branding materials. This delay has hindered the efforts of census enumerators and supervisors to establish trust within the community.
The enumeration process, which began last Friday, requires enumerators to visit households across the country to gather crucial data on population demographics and housing conditions. However, enumerators such as Enock Nyesiga, Joshua Nkwansibwe, Joseph Owaruhanga from Nyakasharara Parish in Kaharo Sub County, along with Moreen Natukunda, Mark Barigye, Godwin Aijuka, Roland Amanya from Kabale Municipality, and Denis Ariganyira from Kamugaguzi Sub County, expressed their challenges due to the absence of official identification materials.
They had been promised branded T-shirts, caps, and official ID cards by sub-county chiefs to establish their legitimacy as enumerators. Yet, the non-arrival of these materials has led to skepticism and resistance from residents, who mistake them for potential fraudsters. This skepticism has hampered the collection of accurate data, posing a significant obstacle in the census process.
Kabale District Communications Officer, Alex Byakatonda, acknowledged the delay in the delivery of branding materials, attributing it to logistical challenges faced by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics. However, he assured that the materials were on their way to the district and would arrive shortly.
Byakatonda appealed to the public to cooperate with enumerators despite the absence of branding materials, emphasizing their authenticity as census officers and stressing the importance of their data collection efforts for national planning and development.
