US welcomes Iraq’s census, encourages Kurds to take part

WASHINGTON, DC -  The United States on Tuesday said it welcomes Iraq’s plan to hold a nationwide census later this week, calling on the Kurdistan Region to join. 

“We welcome Iraq's first census since 1997 which will be taking place this week, and includes all Iraqi provinces. This census is important in the same way the United States conducts its census to provide accurate information for Iraq, to tailor its political, economic and development strategies, and we encourage all Iraqis, including residents of the Iraqi Kurdistan region, to participate in the census,” State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told Rudaw during a press briefing. 

Iraq is set to hold the census on Wednesday. The first phase to survey and count buildings commenced in September. In October, the counting process began in the Kurdistan Region, raising concerns among some Kurdish officials about potential demographic shifts in the disputed areas, especially in the city of Kirkuk.

Iraq last conducted a census in 1997 without the Kurdistan Region; the last census including provinces in the Kurdistan Region was in 1987.

Estimates now put Iraq’s population around 50 million. A census planned for 2020 was postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.