GOVERNMENT-hired enumerators have begun knocking on Saipan households’ doors over the weekend after the U.S. Department of the Interior funded a new survey for this year.
Interior awarded some $25,000 to the CNMI Department of Commerce to conduct the 2002 American Community Survey, which officially started on Saturday. The first such survey was conducted in 2000.
Wilhelm Maui, technical assistant at the Central Statistics Division, said Saipan would be divided into 329 assignment areas for the survey.
“The data collection may take us three to four weeks. Our enumerators will knock on your door and we hope for your cooperation,” Maui told Variety.
The division aims to survey 1,000 sample households.
With an updated housing map that delineates new village boundaries, this year’s survey is expected to yield “better samples,” Maui said.
“We hope to release the survey results this year,” he added.
The survey will include data on population, housing, educational attainment, language and income.
Maui said there will be new information this year, specifically on households’ computer use and access to the Internet.
The Department of Commerce hired 15 enumerators or data collectors for a 90-day contract.
The team, which will be supervised by Justin Andrews and Ignacio Teregeyo of the Central Statistics Division, will work from Monday to Sunday.
The department hopes to conduct a similar survey on Rota and Tinian, if funding becomes available.
Maui said if the funding becomes regular, they expect to conduct the survey twice a year.
The American Community Survey complements the Census, which is held every 10 years.
“This survey will help the government, the private business, the students, foreign investors and everyone of us get a better idea of the population, housing, income, and other information that will help them in policy decisions, research and information. If we have this every year, then we could say we are very updated on the information,” Maui said.
The first American Community Survey results released in February pegged Saipan’s population at 64,324 as of 2000.
Of this number, 35,253 or 55 percent of the population, was comprised of foreigners.
The data also indicated that 70 percent, or 28,852 of Saipan’s 41,217 workers, were mostly from the Philippines and China.
