Population and Housing Census 2021 - Ghana
Ghana, 2021
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Reference ID
GHA-GSS-2021PHC-2021-v1.0
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Ghana Statistical Service
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Created on
Sep 13, 2022
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Jul 12, 2023
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Identification
Survey ID Number
GHA-GSS-2021PHC-2021-v1.0
Title
Population and Housing Census 2021 - Ghana
Country
| Name | Country code |
|---|---|
| Ghana | GHA |
Study type
Population and Housing Census [hh/popcen]
Series Information
The first semblance of a national census was undertaken by the colonial administration since 1891 at approximately ten year interval. Prior to that, local chiefs counted their subjects in their own areas. The series was continued until 1941 when it was interrupted as a result of World War II but was resumed in 1948. The 2021 Population and Housing Census (PHC) is the fifth Population Census in Ghana since independence in 1957 and was undertaken to follow the ten year interval. The previous censuses were conducted in 1960, 1970, 1984 and 2000. Failure to keep to decennial Censuses in 1980 and 1994 was due to the political and economic challenges then facing the country.
The 2021 PHC was the second time that Population Census and Housing Census have been conducted as a combined exercise. The first Population Census combined with Housing Census was carried out in 2000.
The 2021 Census was undertaken to update current information on the size, sex, age, composition and other characteristics of Ghana's population and to ascertain the specific changes in these characteristics which had taken place since the last census was conducted in 2000. The Census was expected to ensure the continuation of a time series of demographic and socio-economic benchmark data at the national and sub-national levels and enhance the capability-building programme of the Statistical Service.
The main objective of the 2021 Population and Housing Census was to update the statistical information on the characteristics of the population of Ghana.
There were four main operatnal area:
- Methodology
- Cartography
- Field
- Operational and Logistics
- Data processing (dataentry/scanning, editing, tabulation and analysis)
The 2021 PHC was the second time that Population Census and Housing Census have been conducted as a combined exercise. The first Population Census combined with Housing Census was carried out in 2000.
The 2021 Census was undertaken to update current information on the size, sex, age, composition and other characteristics of Ghana's population and to ascertain the specific changes in these characteristics which had taken place since the last census was conducted in 2000. The Census was expected to ensure the continuation of a time series of demographic and socio-economic benchmark data at the national and sub-national levels and enhance the capability-building programme of the Statistical Service.
The main objective of the 2021 Population and Housing Census was to update the statistical information on the characteristics of the population of Ghana.
There were four main operatnal area:
- Methodology
- Cartography
- Field
- Operational and Logistics
- Data processing (dataentry/scanning, editing, tabulation and analysis)
Abstract
The population and housing census (PHC) is the unique source of reliable and comprehensive data about the size of
population and also on major socio-economic & socio-demographic characteristics of the country. It provides data on
geographic and administrative distribution of population and household in addition to the demographic and socio-economic
characteristics of all the people in the country.
Generally, it provides for comparing and projecting demographic data, social and economic characteristics, as well as
household and housing conditions at all levels of the country’s administrative units and dimensions: national, regional,
districts and localities. The data from the census is classified, tabulated and disseminated so that researchers, administrators,
policy makers and development partners can use the information in formulating and implementing various multi-sectorial
development programs at the national and community levels. Data on all key variables namely area, household, population,
economic activity, literacy and education, fertility and child survival, housing conditions and sanitation are collected and
available in the census data.
The 2021 PHC in Ghana had an overarching goal of generating updated demographic, social and economic data, housing
characteristics and dwelling conditions to support national development planning activities.
population and also on major socio-economic & socio-demographic characteristics of the country. It provides data on
geographic and administrative distribution of population and household in addition to the demographic and socio-economic
characteristics of all the people in the country.
Generally, it provides for comparing and projecting demographic data, social and economic characteristics, as well as
household and housing conditions at all levels of the country’s administrative units and dimensions: national, regional,
districts and localities. The data from the census is classified, tabulated and disseminated so that researchers, administrators,
policy makers and development partners can use the information in formulating and implementing various multi-sectorial
development programs at the national and community levels. Data on all key variables namely area, household, population,
economic activity, literacy and education, fertility and child survival, housing conditions and sanitation are collected and
available in the census data.
The 2021 PHC in Ghana had an overarching goal of generating updated demographic, social and economic data, housing
characteristics and dwelling conditions to support national development planning activities.
Kind of Data
Census/enumeration data [cen]
Unit of Analysis
- Individuals
- Households
- Emigrants
- Absentee population
- Mortality
- Type of residence (households and non household)
- Households
- Emigrants
- Absentee population
- Mortality
- Type of residence (households and non household)
Version
Version Description
Production Date: 2022-09-13
v1.0: 10 percent sample data
v1.0: 10 percent sample data
Version Date
2022-09-13
Version Notes
This is the first version of the sample dataset
Scope
Notes
The scope of the Population and Housing Census includes:
HOUSING: Housing conditions and community facilities
HOUSEHOLD: Houshold characteristics, absentees, emigrants, ICT use and agricultural activities
PERSONS: Marital status, literacy, education, economic activity, disability and use of ICT, fertility for women aged 12 and above and women 12 years and older
HOUSING: Housing conditions and community facilities
HOUSEHOLD: Houshold characteristics, absentees, emigrants, ICT use and agricultural activities
PERSONS: Marital status, literacy, education, economic activity, disability and use of ICT, fertility for women aged 12 and above and women 12 years and older
Topics
| Topic | Vocabulary | URI |
|---|---|---|
| censuses [14.1] | CESSDA | Link |
| information technology [16.2] | CESSDA | Link |
| basic skills education [6.1] | CESSDA | Link |
| agricultural, forestry and rural industry [2.1] | CESSDA | Link |
| fertility [14.2] | CESSDA | Link |
| morbidity and mortality [14.4] | CESSDA | Link |
| housing [10.1] | CESSDA | Link |
| economic conditions and indicators [1.2] | CESSDA | Link |
Keywords
| Keyword |
|---|
| Census |
| 2021 |
| Housing |
| Household |
| head of household |
| Roster |
| Emigration |
| Population |
| Age |
| Sex |
| Religion |
| Education |
| Literacy |
| ethnicity |
| Marital Status |
| Occupation |
| Industry |
| Employment sector |
| Employment status |
| Disability |
| ICT |
| Fertility |
| birth |
| Children ever born |
| Children surviving |
| Children born in the past 12 months |
| Mortality |
| Agriculture |
| Crop farming |
| Tree growing |
| Livestock rearing |
| Fish farming |
| Type of dwelling |
| Outer wall |
| Floor |
| Roof |
| Tenure |
| Ownership |
| Rooms |
| Lighting |
| Water |
| Cooking fuel |
| Cooking space |
| Bathing facility |
| Toilet |
| waste disposal |
| Community facilities |
| Region |
| residence |
Coverage
Geographic Coverage
National Coverage , Region , District
Geographic Unit
The lowest level of geographic aggregation covered by the data is the Enumeration Area which is the small geographical unit covered by each Census Enumerator.
Universe
The 2021 census covered a de-facto population count of Ghana on Census Night (27th June 2021). These were all usual residents, infants sick as well as the mentally challenged, inmates of institutions. out-door sleepers and all persons who spend census night within the boarders of Ghana, semi-stable floating population enumeration was done immediately after midnight of Census Night. Enumeration was done on Census Night of fishermen, other persons at sea and other persons in Field Camps.
All persons who spent census night (midnight of 27th June 2021) in Ghana
All persons who spent census night (midnight of 27th June 2021) in Ghana
Producers and sponsors
Primary investigators
| Name | Affiliation |
|---|---|
| Ghana Statistical Service | Ministry of Finance |
Producers
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Ministry of Finance | Technical assistance |
Funding Agency/Sponsor
| Name | Abbreviation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Government of Ghana | GoG | |
| United Nations Fund for Population Activities | UNFPA | Technical assistance and material support. |
| United Nations Development Programme | UNDP | Technical assistance and material support. |
| World Bank | WB | Technical assistance and material support. |
Sampling
Sampling Procedure
Response Rate
100 percent
100 percent
Response Rate
100 per cent
Weighting
There are weights to be applied to this 10 percent census dataset. Each file has the corresponding weight variable
Data Collection
Dates of Data Collection
| Start | End |
|---|---|
| 2021-09-26 | 2021-10-22 |
Data Collection Mode
Computer Assisted Personal Interview [CAPI]
Supervision
The 2021 Population and Housing Census had these levels of supervision:
Field Operations Coordinator (a member of the National Census Coordinating Team in Accra) who was responsible for the entire field operation;
At the Regional level, the highest authority was the Regional Census Officer, who was responsible for all aspects of census work as well as the overall supervision of census operations in the region. He/she was assisted by the Assistant Regional Census Officer;
Each Administrative District was under the supervision of a District Census Officer (DCO). The DCO was assisted by a number of Senior Field Supervisors;
Each District was divided into Supervision Areas, each of which was under one Field Supervisor. A Field Supervisor had between five and seven Enumerators to supervise.
Field Operations Coordinator (a member of the National Census Coordinating Team in Accra) who was responsible for the entire field operation;
At the Regional level, the highest authority was the Regional Census Officer, who was responsible for all aspects of census work as well as the overall supervision of census operations in the region. He/she was assisted by the Assistant Regional Census Officer;
Each Administrative District was under the supervision of a District Census Officer (DCO). The DCO was assisted by a number of Senior Field Supervisors;
Each District was divided into Supervision Areas, each of which was under one Field Supervisor. A Field Supervisor had between five and seven Enumerators to supervise.
Data Collection Notes
A trial census was held in 6 selected districts in November 2009 for 10 days. This was followed by the training of Trainiong of Trainers. The trainers were to be come supervisors of th main census.
The fieldwork began on 20th September 2021 with identification of EA boundaries, listing of structures, enumeration of institutional population and floating population, and continued with the enumeration of the household population after Census Night (26th Septmber 2021) for three weeks. A mopping-up exercise to cover about 10 percent uncompleted areas, mainly in selected Districts, was carried out until the end of November. The coverage of the population was mainly on de-facto basis, but a questionnaire item was provided to enable the usual resident population to be obtained.
Questionaires were in the English language but enumerators, as part of their trainning were encouraged to use the local language when the need arose.
The fieldwork began on 20th September 2021 with identification of EA boundaries, listing of structures, enumeration of institutional population and floating population, and continued with the enumeration of the household population after Census Night (26th Septmber 2021) for three weeks. A mopping-up exercise to cover about 10 percent uncompleted areas, mainly in selected Districts, was carried out until the end of November. The coverage of the population was mainly on de-facto basis, but a questionnaire item was provided to enable the usual resident population to be obtained.
Questionaires were in the English language but enumerators, as part of their trainning were encouraged to use the local language when the need arose.
Data Collectors
| Name | Abbreviation |
|---|---|
| Ghana Statistical Service | GSS |
Questionnaires
Questionnaires
PHC-1A: Household questionnaire - admistered to household population. This questionnaire includes modules on Household roster, Usual household members absent, Emigration, Population, Mortality, ICT, Agriculture and Housing
PHC-1A Usual Members Absent Continuation Sheet
PHC-1A Emigration Continuation Sheet
PHC-1B: Group quarter questionnaire - administered to homeless households and group quarter population. This excludes usual members absent, emigration, mortality, ICT at household level, agricultural and housing modules.
PHC-1C: Group quarter questionnaire which was administered to individual members and later transferred to PHC-1B questionnaire
PHC-3: EA Result Sheet - Captured summary information on population by sex and the number of localities in each Enumeration Area (EA).
PHC-4: Final Summary Sheet - Captured summary information on the number of residential structures, number of households, population by sex and household and non-household population and the availability of telecommunication, education, health and toilet facilities in the locality.
PHC-1A Usual Members Absent Continuation Sheet
PHC-1A Emigration Continuation Sheet
PHC-1B: Group quarter questionnaire - administered to homeless households and group quarter population. This excludes usual members absent, emigration, mortality, ICT at household level, agricultural and housing modules.
PHC-1C: Group quarter questionnaire which was administered to individual members and later transferred to PHC-1B questionnaire
PHC-3: EA Result Sheet - Captured summary information on population by sex and the number of localities in each Enumeration Area (EA).
PHC-4: Final Summary Sheet - Captured summary information on the number of residential structures, number of households, population by sex and household and non-household population and the availability of telecommunication, education, health and toilet facilities in the locality.
Data Processing
Data Editing
The Census data editing was implemented at three levels:
1. Field editing by interviewers and supervisors
2. Office editing and coding of occupation and industry
3. Data cleaning and imputation
Data editing was partly manual and partly automatic. Occupation and Industry coding was done by the Field Supervisors but they were edited in the office after the field work. The questionnaire reference numbers were also reviewed as part of the preparatory activities before scanning.
1. Field editing by interviewers and supervisors
2. Office editing and coding of occupation and industry
3. Data cleaning and imputation
Data editing was partly manual and partly automatic. Occupation and Industry coding was done by the Field Supervisors but they were edited in the office after the field work. The questionnaire reference numbers were also reviewed as part of the preparatory activities before scanning.
Other Processing
The data was captured using the scanning technology.
Data capture for the main census began in July 2011, using Fujitsu document scanners.
The data capture involved scanning of the questionnaire, interpretation of the scanned marks, transfer of the data and loading the scanned data into an oracle database. Periodic backups of the data and images were made on compact tapes.
Three 8-hour shift groups, each with a scanning assistant and a supervisor initially worked around the clock, 7 days a week for the first 6 months. Later, the duration of work was changed to a 12-hour shift for the remaining of the period that the scanning of the census questionnaires took to complete.
Data capture for the main census began in July 2011, using Fujitsu document scanners.
The data capture involved scanning of the questionnaire, interpretation of the scanned marks, transfer of the data and loading the scanned data into an oracle database. Periodic backups of the data and images were made on compact tapes.
Three 8-hour shift groups, each with a scanning assistant and a supervisor initially worked around the clock, 7 days a week for the first 6 months. Later, the duration of work was changed to a 12-hour shift for the remaining of the period that the scanning of the census questionnaires took to complete.
Data Appraisal
Estimates of Sampling Error
There was no sampling.
Data Appraisal
A post Enumeration Survey (PES) was conducted to assess the extent of coverage and content error.
( See Adminstrative Report )
( See Adminstrative Report )
Access policy
Contacts
| Name | Affiliation | URL | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Government Statistician | Ghana Statistical Service | gsoffice@statsghana.gov.gh | www.statsghana.gov.gh |
| Head, Data Management Unit | Ghana Statistical Service | dsar@statsghana.gov.gh | www.statsghana.gov.gh |
Confidentiality
Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) requires all users to keep information and data strictly confidential.
In this regard, before being granted access to datasets, all users have to formally agree to observe the following:
1) To make no copies of any files or portions of files to which access has been
granted except with the authorization by GSS
2) Not to willfully identify any individual or household or establishment in the dataset
3) To hold in strictest confidence the identification of any individual or household or
establishment that may be inadvertently revealed in any documents or discussion,
or analysis.
Such inadvertent identification revealed should be immediately brought
to the attention of GSS.
Access conditions
Three levels of accessibility are considered by GSS:
1) Public use files, accessible by all
2) Licensed datasets, accessible under certain conditions
3) Datasets only accessible on location
The following terms and conditions apply:
1. The data and other materials will not be redistributed or sold to other individuals,
institutions, or organizations without the written agreement of GSS.
2. The data will be used for statistical and scientific research purposes only. They
will be used solely for reporting of aggregated information, and not for investigation
of specific individuals or organizations.
3. No attempt will be made to re-identify respondents, and no use will be made of
the identity of any person or establishment discovered inadvertently. Any such
discovery would immediately be reported to the GSS.
4. No attempt will be made to produce links among datasets provided by the GSS
with other datasets that could identify individuals or organizations.
5. Any books, articles, conference papers, theses, dissertations, reports, or other
publications that employ data obtained from the GSS would cite the source of data
in accordance with the Citation statement provided with the dataset.
6. An electronic copy of all reports and publications based on the requested data
will be sent to the GSS.
1) Public use files, accessible by all
2) Licensed datasets, accessible under certain conditions
3) Datasets only accessible on location
The following terms and conditions apply:
1. The data and other materials will not be redistributed or sold to other individuals,
institutions, or organizations without the written agreement of GSS.
2. The data will be used for statistical and scientific research purposes only. They
will be used solely for reporting of aggregated information, and not for investigation
of specific individuals or organizations.
3. No attempt will be made to re-identify respondents, and no use will be made of
the identity of any person or establishment discovered inadvertently. Any such
discovery would immediately be reported to the GSS.
4. No attempt will be made to produce links among datasets provided by the GSS
with other datasets that could identify individuals or organizations.
5. Any books, articles, conference papers, theses, dissertations, reports, or other
publications that employ data obtained from the GSS would cite the source of data
in accordance with the Citation statement provided with the dataset.
6. An electronic copy of all reports and publications based on the requested data
will be sent to the GSS.
Citation requirements
"Ghana Statistical Service, Population and Housing Census 2021 (PHC 2021),
Version 1.0 of the public use dataset (December 2011), provided by the Ghana
Statistical Service. www.statsghana.gov.gh"
Version 1.0 of the public use dataset (December 2011), provided by the Ghana
Statistical Service. www.statsghana.gov.gh"
Access authority
| Name | URL | |
|---|---|---|
| The Government Statistician | gsoffice@statsghana.gov.gh | www.statsghana.gov.gh |
| Head, Data Management Unit | dsar@statsghana.gov.gh | www.statsghana.gov.gh |
Disclaimer and copyrights
Disclaimer
The original collector of the data, GSS and any producers or sponsors cited in this
document bear no responsibility for use of the data or for interpretations or
inferences based upon such uses.
document bear no responsibility for use of the data or for interpretations or
inferences based upon such uses.
Copyright
Copyright © 2022 Ghana Statistical Service
Metadata production
DDI Document ID
DDI-GHA-GSS-PHC-2021-v1.0
Producers
| Name | Abbreviation | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ghana Statistical Service | GSS | autonomous | Documentation of the study |
Date of Metadata Production
2022-09-13
DDI Document version
2022-09-13 v1.0: 10 percent sample data