Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics as our national statistical agency conducts various types of censuses. The most important censuses are population census, agricultural census and economic census.
One of the most important statistical activities in the world is the Economic Census which is conducted under the Economic Census-2023 project under the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics under the Department of Statistics and Information Management. The first Economic Census of the country was conducted in 1986, followed by the 2nd Economic Census in 2001 and 2003, and the 3rd Economic Census in 2013.
In continuation of this, the 4th economic census of Bangladesh is going to be held in 2024. The first zonal operation of ‘Economic Census-2023 Project’ has been completed. The 1st Zonal Operation was conducted in two phases. One of the two phases is the mapping operation and the other is the listing operation. Already in last July 2024, our nationwide census workers have completed the listing process of almost all the houses and institutions of the country.
As an important tool for the economic development of the country and proper planning, the final activities of the Economic Census 2024 will be completed in the middle of November 2024, so to successfully complete the main census activities, today an exchange workshop with different classes of businessmen of the country is organized by the Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce. and Industry (FBCCI)’ was organized in the Board Room of the Headquarters. Leading representatives of various industries and business sectors of the country attended the workshop and gave their important opinions and suggestions for finalizing the census questionnaire.
Organized jointly by Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) and FBCCI, the main objective of the workshop was to make the main census questionnaire more effective and timely for finalization. For this reason, advice was taken to finalize the question paper through the opinions of all present including the business representatives. The workshop was attended by leaders of top business organizations of the country, including FBCCI, who put forward proposals to improve and timeliness of census data collection.
The special guest of the workshop, Mr. SM Shakeel Akhtar, Project Director (Additional Secretary), Technical Expert of Census and emphasizing on the suggestions of the participants said, “The guidance received through today’s workshop will contribute to the formulation of the country’s plan.
The special guest of the event, Mr. Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, Director General (Additional Secretary), Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics said, “FBCCI can play an important role for the smooth implementation of Economic Census. Training and outreach activities can be conducted through FBCCI to increase awareness about the importance of census and to facilitate data collection.”
Chief guest Mr. Mahbub Hossain, Secretary, Statistics and Information Management Department said, “Through economic census, we want to present the true financial picture of the country, which will be helpful in future policy making. The cooperation of the business community is very important in this process.”
Mr. Md presided over the event. Hafizur Rahman, Administrator, Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI). He said, “Business organizations will play an important role in the successful implementation of census activities. Without their cooperation it would not be possible to complete the census. They can help raise awareness among people and businesses about the census process and its importance and collect the necessary data.”
The country’s top business leaders discussed the current economic situation, challenges and prospects in their speeches at today’s exchange workshop. They put forward suggestions to improve and innovate the census data collection system.
The Economic Census 2024 question paper will be finalized soon based on the feedback from the participants. This census will be considered as an important milestone in the overall analysis and planning of the country’s economic indicators.
