At the panel discussion “How can the census be (mis)used?” Organized by CIVIL, the director of the State Statistical Office, Apostol Simovski, benefited from the census that every citizen has.

“Accurate data and information are needed. The Statistical Office remains persistent until the end of the census. The task of the Statistical Office is to provide all accurate data. “There are rules in the census that we will all obey,” Simovski said.

He added that in the end it will give a result of how many people there are in the country and how many are abroad. Information will also be provided for foreigners living in the country for more than 12 months…

“It is not only the number how many we are but and what we are. Politicization for any reason and complicating the census can distort the whole picture,” Simovski said.

“Everything else will be just a pity – not to have a census, as we do not have one for 20 years. Most of the citizens do not even know the consequences. The census is necessary for many institutions. Local self-government, bases for any quality functioning of the local self-government, but also all other institutions. Education suffers without a census, healthcare suffers, science suffers – these data are necessary, everything else would be wrong information,” Simovski said.