Population census started in Russia

As noted by RIA Novosti, this is the third census in the modern history of Russia: before that they were conducted in 2002 and 2010.

“The current one is characterized by extensive use of advanced technologies. You can take part in it not only in the traditional format, after waiting for the census taker, but also independently: on the portal of public services, in the MFC or at stationary census districts”, - the message says.

Unlike previous rounds of the census, campaign staff will not have paper sheets, but tablets with an electronic census application installed. Due to digitalization, the collection and further processing of information should be significantly accelerated.

For those who do not want to answer the questions of the scribe and want to avoid unnecessary contacts with people during a pandemic, an electronic service is provided on the portal of public services. It is located at census.gosuslugi.ru. Thanks to this function, about 100 million Russians will be able to complete the survey on their own.

To protect census takers and survey participants from covid contamination, census takers will be warned of social distancing, protective equipment, and regularly tested for COVID-19. who has antibodies after an illness or has been vaccinated.

The questionnaire will include 33 questions. The respondents will be asked to name their gender, age, citizenship, nationality, degree of proficiency in foreign languages, education and marital status, number of children, characteristics of housing: apartment area, year of construction of the house, footage. People will not be asked about the amount of income, but they will be asked to indicate its source. Possible answers include salary, pension, allowance, or scholarship. Answers will take about 20 minutes.

To protect citizens from fraudsters, the census organizers warned that it is not being conducted over the phone. If they call you and ask you personal questions, this is a reason to be wary.

The information obtained from the census will be used for social programs, the distribution of budget funds, government support, the construction of schools, hospitals, housing and roads. The preliminary results will be announced in April, and the full results are planned to be published in the fourth quarter of 2022.

The idea of compulsory participation of the population in the census arose in Rosstat in 2010. More than a million people refused to participate in the census, another 2.6 million avoided contact with census takers, 3.5 million people did not report their education, four million hid their livelihoods, and another 4.6 million hid their economic activities...

After that, Rosstat prepared an initiative on the need to fine citizens for refusing to answer questions from census takers. The amount of the fine was proposed to be set at the level of 100 to 300 rubles. However, then there was information that the fines would not be applied.