Unannounced demographic surveys and cartographic data collection across Addis Ababa and Sheger City trigger widespread public anxiety
Staff Reporter
(Nairobi, Kenya) — The Addis Ababa and Sheger City administrations are reportedly conducting an undisclosed population survey, deploying field personnel across municipal districts without formal public announcements.
Reports citing investigative coverage by Wazema Media indicate that enumerators from the Federal Statistics Service have been collecting detailed household data door-to-door across selected urban neighborhoods.
Residents subject to the survey confirmed that enumerators are gathering comprehensive personal and demographic profiles. Questionnaire parameters include household size, age distribution, gender, religious affiliation, educational attainment, marital status, and monthly income levels.
In specific neighborhoods, technical teams from the Statistics Service’s Cartography and Geographic Information System department have also been measuring residential plot dimensions—a process ongoing since mid-June 2025.
The absence of public briefings from federal or regional authorities has triggered widespread suspicion among local communities. Residents reported receiving conflicting explanations from field enumerators regarding the ultimate purpose of the exercise.
Public anxiety remains heightened due to prior demographic and settlement composition studies conducted within the recently established Sheger City Administration—a municipality carved out of the surrounding Oromia Region. Community members expressed concerns that the unannounced data gathering could precursor planned administrative boundary shifts or deliberate demographic restructuring across the capital’s perimeter.
Addressing the public apprehension, an official from the Federal Statistics Service, speaking on condition of anonymity, dismissed claims of political or territorial motives.
The official clarified that field teams are executing routine cartographic and spatial mapping preparations rather than conducting a formal national population census or adjusting administrative borders, urging the public not to evaluate technical statistical activities through a political lens.
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