Highlights
- Information and assistance are available on the Census website in 29 different languages.
- Demographers say it is crucial to gather data during a pandemic to determine how Australians' lifestyles have changed over time.
- It is expected that most Australians will complete their Census online
It's just a few weeks away- Australia's largest survey conducted every five years to gather household information.
The organisers of this year's Census have had to adapt and most Australians will receive their instructions in the mail early August.
Teresa Dickinson is a deputy Australian statistician says it is still possible to run the Census under lockdown conditions with the process being contactless.
"Even though we are only two weeks out from the Census, we can't really predict the future, things are changing for us so quickly. But in 2016, we got a really good response rate. We had a 95 per cent response rate, we had really high quality data and the Australian public has always got behind the Census and we are just hoping that this will be the case again"
About 75 per cent of Australians are expected to complete the form online but that's not the case for everyone.
Ms Dickinson is aware that usually culturally and linguistically diverse communities rely on a more personal connection when completing the Census.
The Bureau is relying on trusted local groups like the Federation of Ethnic Communities' Councils of Australia to get the word out.
FECCA's chief executive Mohammad Al-Khafaji says everyone is reaching out to offer Census support.
Dr Liz Allen from the Australian National University says steps have been taken to ensure online infrastructure is stable after website problems last time around.
"We're expecting that most Australians will complete their Census online because of the pandemic. So there has been quite a lot of anticipation and supports for ensuring the safety of the online environment. We've had ethical hackers be employed the ABS to ensure that the systems are sound."
Dr Allen says she hopes the daily desire for coronavirus figures and developments will translate into strong Census results.
