Ready to be counted?

Statistics Canada is readying the new 2011 Census which will be distributed to all communities across the country to collect information about the people who live in Canada.

The federal organization has sent out information to Aboriginal communities to promote full participation and increase accuracy in data collected in the Census short-form questionnaire this May.

“Accurate data helps First Nations, Metis and Inuit leaders make informed decisions to improve the quality of life for the people who live in their communities,” reads an Aboriginal network newsletter published by Statistics Canada’s Western Region and Northern Territories.

Statistics Canada has also implemented the Aboriginal Liaison Advisors Program. An agent can provide 2006 Census information to the community and meet with community leaders, or, “give you the tools to encourage complete participation in your community, including promotional materials such as posters and Web buttons and articles for use in newsletters and with local media,” according to the Regina-based newsletter.

“The 2011 Census is less than a year away,” the newsletter states. “Your support is critical to ensuring that everyone in your community is counted and that the data collected for your community is as complete and accurate as possible.”

From now until the Census applications are complete, liaison officers will attend meetings, host trade booths and meet with community leaders and Aboriginal organizations for discussions regarding job recruitment and participation.

The same eight questions from the last 2006 Census short-form will once again appear on this year’s mandatory form, but two questions about language have been added.

The questionnaire asks for the applicant’s name, address, the name and list of people living in the same residence of the applicant and “activities of daily living,” among others.

Following the Census, the voluntary and long-form National Household Survey (NHS) is expected to cover the same topics as the 2006 Census, including demography, activity limitations, education and immigration, among others.

The information collected by the voluntary survey provides information to support government programs for target populations. It also gives provincial, territorial and local government the opportunity to make more informed decisions.

“We are counting on Canadians who receive this survey to recognize the importance of this information and to respond to the survey,” the newsletter states.

About 4.5 million households will receive the National Household Survey within four weeks of the mandatory Census form. The first National Household Survey data is expected to be released by December 2012.