INE still faces the absence of its director; cartography reaches 29%

Today, November 16, the Population and Housing Census was to be carried out in the countryaccording to repealed decree 4546. However, the National Institute of Statistics (INE) reaches this date, according to the criteria of the experts, with little credibility due to two modified regulations, a “weak” institutionality due to the absence of its director and a cartographic update at 29% with delays.

“The big loser in the conflict over the census is precisely the INE. Today we find him with a weak institutional framework due to political interference that has caused all his work to be devalued and, worst of all, that he now has low credibility in the population,” said the director of the Jubilee Foundation, Juan Carlos Núñez.

The expert pointed out that the lack of an official and sole spokesperson for the census is a sign of deinstitutionalization of the INE and criticized that even the Minister of Government has ruled on the subject.

The absence of Humberto Arandia, still director of the INE, is due to a medical problem that prevented him from taking charge of the institution since June, when there were already difficulties due to the lack of dissemination of the census advances. This was followed by the resignation of Gabriela Mendoza to the Ministry of Planning, who months later confessed that a “black hand” frustrated the census.

This situation led to there is more than one INE spokesperson: the Minister of Planning, Sergio Cusicanqui; the presidential spokesman, Jorge Richter; the Vice Minister of Planning, David Guachalla, and the Census Coordinator, Martha Oviedo.

Though Gastón Cordero was installed as interim director, he was rarely seen providing information on the census process. EL DEBER consulted the INE if Arandia continues as director of that agency, and they stated that he has “license without pay for medical care.”

Nunez added that the INE lacks “independence” due to its technical nature and he said that it is the biggest deficiency that became visible during these months of conflict. To resolve this lack of autonomy, the Paceñidad Assembly proposed the creation of the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INEC), which is independent of the Executive Branch and that the director be elected by two-thirds of the Legislative Assembly.

The coordinator of the Census Route, Mario Galindo, stated that the lack of transparency and access to information is another problem that must be solved as the network he runs had limited access.

Restricted data was also an issue at the Trinidad technical table and that the technicians from Santa Cruz denounced more than once.

Mapping progress
Another aspect analyzed by the technicians is the progress of the cartographic update that they described as “slow” and whose field work started late due to lack of mobile devices.

The Vice Minister of Planning and Coordination, David Guachalla, reported that the national cartographic update has an advance of 29% and that it has not stopped since May, with the exception of Santa Cruz where there was a delay.

“Regarding the statistical cartographic update, there is an advance of 29%, it is important to mention that At the same time, work is being done on the definition of the census form through cognitive tests. to have a ballot with a finalized version to face the experimental census,” he reported.

The cartography concluded in four capital cities: Oruro, Potosí, Trinidad and Tarija. While Sucre reached 88%; Santa Cruz, 45%; La Paz, 35%; Cochabamba, 36% and El Alto, 18%.

weekend census
Despite the fact that DS 4824 indicates that the census will be carried out on a Saturday, the experts suggested concentrating on the other achievements such as the definition of the delivery of census results and that should be embodied in a law.

“Delivery of results was achieved in September to make the corresponding applications. We must put in a balance, if we look for results or we close on a date ”, affirmed the economist Jorge Akamine.