South Africa’s chief statistician defends census data amid immunisation dispute
South Africa’s Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke rejected the Department of Health’s accusations that the population data produced by Stats SA are inaccurate. The ministry said its declaration of an immunisation crisis was based on inaccurate data from the statistical service, TimesLIVE reports.
Maluleke disagreed with the department’s claims. He said careful methods are used in preparing the 2022 census data and mid-year population estimates to ensure they are reliable for users.
Census data
According to the 2022 census, South Africa’s population was 62 million. According to Stats SA’s latest mid-year estimates, the figure is 63.5 million.
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Maluleke recalled that after the census results were released, two professors said the population may have been overestimated by about one million people. He acknowledged the criticism but stressed that it does not in itself prove that the methods or the results obtained are unreliable.
Immunisation issue
The journalist noted that, according to the Department of Health’s calculations, more than one-third of children under 12 months had not been vaccinated, and raised the question of the absence of a sharp rise in hospitalisations among unvaccinated infants. Maluleke replied that he could not explain the methodology used by the ministry and advised seeking clarification from the department itself.
The statistician also said that criticism from demographers, the International Monetary Fund and economists does not automatically mean that Stats SA statistics are unreliable. According to him, the fitness of the census results for use was confirmed by the Statistics Council after consultations with national and international experts.
