5. The peak year in the 2010 round of censuses was 2011, when 60 countries/areas
conducted a population and housing census were conducted worldwide. 1 According to
the initial scheduling by countries and areas, the peak year was expected to be 2010.
However, owing to various factors, such as financial constraints, technical difficulties
encountered in the preparations, and political and social insecurity, 17 countries/areas
had their censuses rescheduled from 2010 to 2011. The postponements, coupled with
the fact that a number of countries/areas were not able to conduct a population and
housing census in the 2010 round, indicate that implementation of the 2010 World
Programme faced considerable challenges and that those challenges will most likely
need to be addressed in the next round as well.