As part of the preparatory work of the General Population Census 2024, the National Statistical Office of Georgia has initiated visits to the three municipalities of Samtskhe - Javakheti region (Akhalkalaki, Akhaltsikhe and Borjomi) since June 25, 2023. The first phase of work involves listing the buildings and households of the above-mentioned municipalities.

In this regard, Geostat organized an informational meeting in Samtskhe - Javakheti. The meeting aims to update the local government and self-government authorities on the current status of the preparatory work of the Population Census and share future plans. Besik Amiranashvili, State Representative of the Samtskhe - Javakheti, along with the representatives from local self-governments attended the meeting.

The fieldwork of preparatory work of the General Population Census 2024 will last for 15 days and will be conducted by the staff trained by Geostat. The Data collection is carried out with modern technologies using tablets.

During Phase I, information regarding the country’s households and the number of people actually dwelling in households will be collected. This information is necessary to conduct the General Population Census in the country.

From September 2023, the compilation of the preliminary listing of households will be carried out in Tbilisi. Within the framework of the General Population Census 2024 the preparation of preliminary listing the buildings and households of Georgia with Shida Kartli and Samtskhe - Javakheti will be completed. It should be mentioned, that 3,500 trained interviewers have been involved in the above-mentioned activities.

It is planned to collect the data of the General Population Census 2024 in the period from 14 November to 19 December 2024. During this period, detailed information regarding the population size, and composition, as well as social, economic, and demographic characteristics, both at the level of self- governing unit as well as settlements ones.

This information is crucial in order to determine the demographic situation, and priorities of socio-economic developments, and inform the society in the country. In addition, the General Population Census is an important source for monitoring the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals indicators.

For maximizing the efficiency of available financial and human resources, the Agricultural Census will be carried out together with the Population Census in 2024. Thus, along with the socio-demographic data, the information on households’ agricultural activities will also be obtained. The Population Censuses in the countries are conducted once in 10 years. The previous Population Census in Georgia conducted in 2014.